Muslims living in the Georgian village of Talaveri prepare meat for the celebration of Kurban Bairam - the Islamic holiday also known as Eid al-Adha. In Talaveri, where the overwhelming majority of the population is ethnic Azeris, villagers started building a mosque - seen in the background - more than a year ago.
Shortly after construction began, representatives from Union of Orthodox Parents - considered by some a radical religious organization - visited the community, claiming the ethnic Azeris were "only guests" in Georgia and could not continue constructing the mosque without permission from the Georgian Orthodox Church. Following an assurance by the church that the claim made by the Union of Orthodox Parents was false, the Talaveri muslims have continued the construction of the mosque.
Pressure on religious minorities remains among one of Georgia’s major human rights issues, though the number of such cases has dropped in recent years.
Temo Bardzimashvili is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
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