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OSCE monitors 'held in S Ossetia' OSCE monitors 'held in S Ossetia'
(20 minutes later)
The leader of Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia says his forces have detained several OSCE observers, Russian media report. The leader of Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia says his forces have detained several OSCE observers.
Eduard Kokoity said the observers were being held for "illegally crossing the Georgian-South Ossetian border". Eduard Kokoity said the observers were being held for "illegally crossing the Georgian-South Ossetian border", according to the Interfax news agency.
An OSCE spokesman told the BBC that two monitors had been detained "somewhere around the administrative boundary of South Ossetia" on Tuesday morning. An OSCE spokesman told the BBC that two officers had been detained "somewhere around the administrative boundary of South Ossetia" on Tuesday morning.
The monitors are overseeing a ceasefire agreement between Georgia and Russia.The monitors are overseeing a ceasefire agreement between Georgia and Russia.
The neighbours fought a war last August, during which Georgia's attempts to regain control of South Ossetia and its other breakaway region of Abkhazia were repelled by Russian and separatist forces.
Both regions have been trying to gain formal independence since breaking away in the early 1990s. Russia has now recognised them as independent - a move condemned by Western nations.
'Provocative'
On Tuesday, South Ossetia's separatist administration said a group of OSCE monitors had been caught entering its territory illegally.
"The OSCE observers unlawfully crossed the border of South Ossetia in the Tskhinvali district by car and were detained by South Ossetian border guards," Mr Kokoity said, according to Interfax.
"The acts by the OSCE are provocative," he added.
OSCE spokesman Martin Nesirky confirmed that two OSCE military monitoring officers "appear to have been detained somewhere around the administrative boundary of South Ossetia".
"Colleagues in our mission in Tbilisi are trying to find out more," he told the BBC.
Two OSCE monitors were briefly detained by separatist forces in February after allegedly straying into South Ossetia.