Russia orders halt to war, Georgia sceptical

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev ordered a halt to military operations in Georgia yesterday but Tbilisi cast doubt on the announcement, saying Moscow was still bombing towns and villages.

In a first US reaction, Washington's envoy to the region, Matthew Bryza, termed the Russian move "extremely positive".

The conflict over the tiny separatist province of South Ossetia has spooked markets and rattled the West. It began when Georgia tried to retake the pro-Russian region last week, provoking a massive counter-offensive from Moscow.

Using language redolent of his mentor Vladimir Putin, Mr Medvedev criticised Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili yesterday as a "lunatic".

Mr Saakashvili had promised voters he would win back South Ossetia and a second separatist area, Abkhazia.

"You know, lunatics' difference from other people is that when they smell blood it is very difficult to stop them. So you have to use surgery," Mr Medvedev told a news conference.

In the conflict zone, a series of sudden, unexpected explosions on Tuesday in the town of Gori, about 70 kilometres west of Tbilisi, killed at least five civilians, a Reuters correspondent said.

Television footage and pictures suggested the blasts were caused by mortars, although it was not clear who fired. Russian forces were reported to be around 12 kilometres away at the time and denied attacking the town, which is the birthplace of Soviet leader Josef Stalin.

A Reuters witness said blasts shook the street in quick succession, gouging craters in the street and sending shrapnel flying through the air.

Broadcaster RTL later said a Dutch cameraman was among the dead and a correspondent was wounded.

Further north in the separatist capital of Tskhinvali, houses were still burning yesterday, surrounded by orchards and chestnut groves, after the battles of the last week. Russian tanks and armoured personnel carriers patrolled the almost deserted streets.