Georgian police on November 24 released three Russian citizens who had been detained in the vicinity of the breakaway region of South Ossetia in an apparent tit-for-tat response to the recent Russian arrest of four Georgian teenagers.

Three Russians, who reportedly were working on repairing broadcasting equipment in South Ossetia, were arrested on November 23 in the nearby Georgian-controlled village of Zemo Nikozi for having entered Georgian territory without a visa, the Georgian Interior Ministry said.

Georgian television channels broadcast the handover of the detainees to Russia at a border checkpoint on the afternoon of November 24.

Since November 4, four Georgian teenagers have been kept in detention in South Ossetia on charges of crossing the border illegally and possession of explosives.