On 28 January, the head of the Georgian Intelligence Service and the Secretary of the National Security Council Levan Izoria resigned from his current posts in order to become Georgia’s ambassador in Germany, reported agenda.ge.

“In December it was decided [I would] continue my work in Germany as the next [Georgian] Ambassador to Germany. In the beginning of January [2020], I already stated that on 27 January  I would write a letter asking for resignation [from the Intelligence Chief position],” Izoria stated, adding that he is expecting to take on his new role in mid-February.  

“Being the country’s new ambassador to Germany is a new challenge, honour and a big responsibility for me,” he added, criticizing the opposition for calling the resignation “a demotion.”

Speaking about the video involving his brother, Izoria dismissed the opposition’s accusations of “concealing a crime.” On 24 January, a video was released depicting the 2014 detention of Vakhtang Izoria, brother of Levan Izoria. In the video Izoria’s brother cursed at Giorgi Dvalishvili, the police official who detained him. The policeman explained that he was forced to detain him for petty hooliganism and handcuffed him. But the abuse and threats continued. 

Dvalishvili stated that after the incident, he was pressured and eventually dismissed from his post. Since then, he has decided to make the whole story public.

Levan Izoria said that he learnt about the incident only after the fact and he “never forced law enforcers to release his brother.” Izoria also said that Mayor Giorgi Dvalishvili, who detained his brother for hooliganism and disobeying the police in 2014, was promoted several times and “his [Dvalishvili’s] accusations of political prosecution were invented.” 

Levan Izoria was appointed as Chief of Intelligence Service in September 2019, replacing Davit Sujashvili on this position. Previously, he was Georgia’s Defence Minister (2016-2019), Deputy Head of the State Security Service (2015-2016), and Deputy Interior Minister (2012-2015).