Georgian officials took part in the 47th anniversary of Iran’s Islamic revolution, organised by the Iranian Embassy, while the Tbilisi TV Tower was lit in the colours of Iran’s flag. Both the event and the lighting drew criticism due to their timing amidst Iran’s brutal crackdown on anti-government protests.
The 1979 revolution, which led to the establishment of the Islamic Republic in Iran, was marked on Wednesday at a hotel in central Tbilisi associated with Bidzina Ivanishvili, the billionaire founder of the ruling Georgian Dream party. The event was organised by the Iranian Embassy.
According to public sources, at least two Georgian officials attended: First Deputy Foreign Minister Lasha Darsalia and Head of the State Security Special Service Anzor Chubinidze.
Iran’s ambassador to Georgia, Ali Moujani, shared on social media a speech attributed to Darsalia, in which he congratulated Iran on the occasion and expressed gratitude for what he called ‘Iran’s steadfast support for Georgia over the years’.
‘The government of Georgia is ready to continue its cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran to advance a positive agenda in the region’, Darsalia added.
A week earlier, Darsalia was on an official visit to Washington, where he met with US Deputy Secretary of State Brendan Hanrahan. According to the ministry, ‘the Georgian side once again emphasised its readiness to reset relations with the United States and the importance of renewing the strategic partnership’.
In parallel to Thursday’s event, the Tbilisi TV Tower was lit in the colours of the Iranian flag, a video of which Moujani also shared online. According to him, the gesture was based ‘on the historical relations between Iran and Georgia, and with a view to the good relations between the two nations’.
He also added that this is a ‘clear symbol’ that today’s Iran is ‘recognised at the official and international level, not as in the fake reports of some news networks’, clearly hinting at critical coverage of the Iranian government.
Meanwhile, Tbilisi City Hall told local media that lighting the tower is a long-standing practice, done in response to requests from representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited in Georgia.
A one-woman protest blocked and a journalist obstructed
This year’s celebrations of the Islamic Revolution are taking place in parallel with a widespread crackdown on opponents of the local authorities.
According to various reports, Iran’s security forces have killed thousands of people during anti-government protests, which began in December 2025 over economic issues and quickly took on an anti-regime character.
‘Shame on those of you who support the Islamic Republic. Your hands are stained with the blood of the +50,000 Iranians who were massacred’, Mariam Sharifi, an Iranian activist living in Tbilisi, wrote on Facebook.
‘Most ordinary people of Georgia have always stood on the side of humanity and have supported Iranians. However, the government and those who have interests have stood with the Islamic Republic. We will not forget’, she added.
Yousef Bardouka
Sharifi went to the embassy reception and tried to express her protest there. According to Publika, unknown individuals at the hotel restricted her freedom and later released her.
Publika added that the individuals also prevented its journalist from covering Sharifi’s protest, with one person even taking the journalist’s phone, tossing it aside, and then forcing the reporter to delete the recorded material.
‘According to [our] journalist, the same individuals took her press ID and personal identification, and also photographed both her and the documents’, the publication wrote.
Tbilisi’s celebrations, particularly the tower lighting, was criticised on Friday by the Israeli Embassy in Georgia, noting that it takes place while ‘Iran’s murderous, terror-supporting regime slaughters thousands in the streets of its cities’ and is ‘actively engaged in terror in the region and worldwide’.
‘What message is Tbilisi sending to the region, the world, and to the citizens of Iran who have long been striving for freedom and democracy?’, the statement read.
The Israeli Embassy has also criticised Georgian authorities’ past Iran-related actions, including the 2025 visit of Georgia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Aleksandre Khvtisiashvili to an event at the Iranian Embassy, which, according to the embassy, paid tribute to the ‘martyrs who died during the Israeli regime’s armed attack against Iran’s territorial integrity’.
In recent weeks, parallel to the crackdown on protests in Iran, opposition-minded Iranians living in Tbilisi organised several demonstrations outside the Iranian Embassy, sometimes joined by Georgians in solidarity.
Mikheil Gvadzabia
