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| Russia 'begins Georgia handover' | Russia 'begins Georgia handover' |
| (11 minutes later) | |
| Russian troops are handing over control of the area around the town of Gori to Georgian forces, officials say. | Russian troops are handing over control of the area around the town of Gori to Georgian forces, officials say. |
| The move would be evidence of Moscow's compliance with the terms of a truce to end a week of conflict with Georgia. | The move would be evidence of Moscow's compliance with the terms of a truce to end a week of conflict with Georgia. |
| But a Russian general in the area said Moscow's troops would remain nearby for several days, apparently to remove weaponry and unexploded ordnance. | But a Russian general in the area said Moscow's troops would remain nearby for several days, apparently to remove weaponry and unexploded ordnance. |
| Georgia launched an attack on the rebel region of South Ossetia from Gori and the town has remained a key flashpoint. | |
| Russian troops headed towards the town after they moved against Georgian forces in South Ossetia, sparking a rapid retreat by Georgian forces and civilians on Monday. | |
| Gori has also come under air attack, with reports of Russian planes bombing the town after Moscow declared an end to its military operation on Tuesday. | |
| And sightings of a column of Russian armoured vehicles moving close to the town on Wednesday raised concerns that the Kremlin would not make a quick withdrawal from Georgian territory, despite agreeing to a European peace plan. | |
| Overnight, the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, urged Moscow to meet its own pledge to pull troops out of Georgia altogether. |