PATRIARCH ILIA’S SURGERY SUCCESSFUL AFTER POSSIBLE POISONING ATTEMPT
Photo: RIA Novosti
Pravoslavie.ru – 14/2/17
His Holiness Patriarch-Catholicos Ilia of Georgia’s previously reported planned surgery was successfully performed today in Germany.
“The operation was successfully completed,” his attending doctor from the Helios Berlin-Buch Clinic told Rustavi2. His Holiness was flown to Germany after complications following kidney stones. He underwent laparoscopic gallbladder surgery this morning. Various hierarchs and clergy arrived both before and after the surgery to offer their patriarch their prayers, comfort, and support.
Thankfully all went well despite a supposed poisoning attempt. As RIA-Novosti writes, Georgian media reports that after a supposed attempt on his life while he was preparing for surgery, the patriarch’s security was strengthened, the head of security was interrogated, and the head of management for the patriarch’s assets was arrested.
Nothing has as yet been officially confirmed.
As reported by Rustavi2 on Friday, the head of the patriarch’s property management and director of the Sts. Joachim and Anna medical center Fr. George Mamaladze, was detained at the Tbilisi airport. His arrest has been confirmed by the Tbilisi city court. The patriarch’s head of security Ioseb Okhanashbili was also returned to Tbilisi and questioned for several hours. He then returned to Germany.
Archbishop Jacob, in Germany with the patriarch, stated, “When I return to Tbilisi, everything will become clear. You can call me and I’ll tell you everything. I don’t want to sound like I’m gossiping. Everything will be cleared up when I return.”
The patriarch is feeling well, and the scope of his rehabilitation process should become clear in the next few days.
