Fight breaks out during Georgia street protests

By Margarita Antidze and Matt Robinson

TBILISI (Reuters) - Tensions flared on Saturday during the third day of an opposition street campaign in Georgia against President Mikheil Saakashvili with the authorities and protesters trading blame for a fight at the protest venue.

Opposition leaders said a 50-strong mob had attacked the venue, tearing banners and ripping out computer cables at a stage set up outside parliament as dozens of protesters prepared to spend a third night on the street.

Police, however, said protesters had set on street cleaners who arrived to clear the site of litter.

Up to 5,000 people rallied on Saturday, a sharp drop from the previous two days when 60,000 and then 20,000 took to the streets to demand Saakashvili quit over his record on democracy and last year's disastrous war with Russia.

Saakashvili has refused to resign, and instead offered dialogue. Some opposition leaders said on Friday they had agreed, but the details of a possible meeting have not been set.

"That's the government's response to its own proposal for dialogue," Salome Zurabishvili, one of the opposition leaders, told reporters after the clash. "This is an insult to the Georgian people and an insult to any dialogue," she said.

CRACKDOWN

The Georgian Interior Ministry released a statement denying any involvement. It blamed protesters, who on Saturday again blocked three main roads in the capital.