Georgia’s rebel TV channel back on air

2 Apr, 2008 00:55 / Updated 16 years ago

Independent television station, Imedi, is back on air in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, several months after being shut down. A trial broadcast is due to take place amid a feud over ownership of the company.

The station, known for being pro-opposition, stopped broadcasting when it was raided by special forces and closed down in November. The channel’s owner, billionaire oligarch Badri Patarkatsishvili, died in Britain in February, prompting his distant relative, Joseph Kay, to claim ownership. Patarkatsishvili’s immediate family, who are planning to go to court to keep the station, believe Kay is a government stooge.