Published: 21:29 Last updated: 21:29
Pictures from the escalating conflict between Georgian and Russian forces in the separatist province of South Ossetia
Saturday August 9A Russian mobile artillery unit fires a 152mm shell towards a Georgian position outside the South-Ossetian settlement of Dzhava. Georgia's calls for a ceasefire on Sunday failed to halt Russia's mounting military response.
Saturday August 9 Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, 2nd from left, speaks with South Ossetian refugees who fled the fighting in the Georgian breakaway region, during their meeting in Vladikavkaz, the provincial capital of the region of North Ossetia that neighbors South Ossetia.
Sunday August 10Givi Mamukashvili, left and his sister Nana contemplate their damaged apartment in Gori, just outside the breakaway province of South Ossetia. Georgia, whose troops have been trained by American soldiers, began an offensive to regain control over South Ossetia overnight Friday, launching heavy rocket and artillery fire and air strikes that pounded the provincial capital, Tskhinvali. In response, Russia, which has granted passports to most South Ossetians, launched overwhelming artillery shelling and air attacks on Georgian troops.
Saturday August 10Vladimir Putin, second from left, looks at a man injured during fighting in South Ossetia during a visit to field hospital in Vladikavkaz, the provincial capital of the Russian region of North Ossetia. During a meeting with refugees in the city on Saturday, Mr Putin described Georgia's actions as "complete genocide”.
Sunday August 10A South Ossetian soldier walks near a destroyed armoured vehicle in Tskhinvali. Analysts said that Russia, with its military charge into a rebel pocket of Georgia, had staked out a strategic red line and it would not allow its interests there to be thwarted without a fight.
Sunday August 10Georgian soldiers look at lists of their wounded comrades in Gori. Georgian troops retreated from South Ossetia on Sunday and their government pressed for a truce, overwhelmed by Russian firepower as the conflict threatened to set off a wider war.
Sunday August 10Georgian refugees walk with their belongings near village of Troiavi. The leader of the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia on Sunday decreed a 10-day "state of war" in areas close to Georgian-controlled territory, Russia's Interfax news agency reported.
Sunday August 10A woman and her son who fled fighting in South Ossetia wait in Vladikavkaz for a bus
Sunday August 10Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, Russian president (left), speaks with Vladimir Putin, prime minister, upon Mr Putins' return from North Ossetia on Sunday. Georgian forces withdrew from nearly all of the breakaway region of South Ossetia and reports emerged that Russian warships had moved to set up a sea blockade to prevent arms and other military supplies from reaching Georgia.
Sunday August 10Russian political activists protest outside the Georgian embassy on Sunday August 10 to voice their anger over what they consider to be aggression by Georgia against the residents of South Ossetia.
Monday August 11Friends and relatives cry in mourning as a woman holds up a photograph of Vasily Bazayev, an ethnic Ossetian who was killed in Tskhinvali during the armed conflict between Georgia and South Ossetian separatists, as he is buried in Nogir, North Ossetia. The Russian foreign ministry has said that 1600 civilians have died so far in the conflict.
Monday August 11Georgia's president Mikheil Saakashvili said Russian aircraft were deliberately targeting civilians on the roads of Georgia and that tanks had advanced to within five km of the town of Gori and had then pulled back to 20km. In a statement Mr Saakashvili said "This provocation was aimed at occupying South Ossetia, Abkhazia and then all of Georgia".
Monday August 11Georgian soldiers sit atop armoured vehicles as they make their way on a street in Gori, Georgia, near the breakaway province of South Ossetia.
Tuesday August 12Around 50,000 Georgians rally in front of the parliament building in central Tbilisi to protest against the ongoing conflict. More than 50,000 people gathered at a rally and thousands more were streaming to the event where leading politicians were making speeches.
Tuesday August 12Russian President Dmitry Medvedev (right) shakes hands with French President Nicolas Sarkozy at the Kremlin. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said it was ‘normal’ for Moscow to defend Russian-speaking people beyond its borders, but added that Georgia's territorial integrity had to be respected.
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