Vakhtang Gomelauri, Minister of Internal Affairs and Vice Prime Minister of Georgian Dream, has resigned. "Today, when there is a peaceful situation in the country, I have allowed myself to devote more time to my family - my wife, children, and newly acquired grandchild," Gomelauri explained in a statement released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs.
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He thanked Bidzina Ivanishvili, founder of Georgian Dream and the country's informal ruler, the Prime Minister of Georgian Dream, the government, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs employees.
Vakhtang Gomelauri was Bidzina Ivanishvili's head of security until 2013. In 2013, he was appointed Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs, and in 2015, he became Minister of Internal Affairs. 2015-2019, he served as the Head of the State Security Service of Georgia. On September 8, 2019, he was appointed Minister of Internal Affairs for the second time.
In December 2024, Vakhtang Gomelauri was added to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s global Magnitsky List due to violence against peaceful demonstrators and journalists. Gomelauri is also sanctioned by the United Kingdom and other Western countries.
After being sanctioned, Gomelauri was appointed Vice Prime Minister by Georgian Dream Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze.
In January, Gomelauri was awarded the Order of Honor by Georgian Dream President Mikheil Kavelashvili for his "special contribution to strengthening legality and law and order."
Regarding the new Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgian Dream, Gela Geladze worked as a senior investigator for particularly important cases in the Special Operations Department (SOD) from 2004-2005 during the United National Movement government. From 2005-2006, he served as Deputy Head of a division in the Criminal Police Department, and from 2007-2008, he was an advisor at the General Inspection of the Ministry of Justice. Between 2010 and 2012, he was Deputy Head of the LEPL Office of Resource Officers of Educational Institutions.
Geladze was Deputy Head of the National Probation Agency from 2012-2016. He then served as Head of a division in the Central Criminal Police Department from 2016-2018, and Head of the LEPL Office of Resource Officers of Educational Institutions from 2018-2023. From 2023-2024, he was Deputy Minister of Education, Science, and Youth, followed by a period as Deputy Minister of Defense from 2024-2025. Since April 2025, following Anri Okhanashvili's appointment as Head of the State Security Service, Geladze has been his deputy.
