President backers mass in Georgia

Up to 10,000 attended the march

An estimated 10,000 people have marched in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, to back President Eduard Shevardnadze.

The move follows more than two weeks of opposition-led protests in the city, after flawed elections in which results remain undeclared.

Opposition parties have been demanding Mr Shevardnadze's resignation during street protests in Tbilisi.

Tuesday's gathering by pro-Shevardnadze demonstrators was the first of its kind since the 2 November election.

Most of those attending had been brought in by bus from Black Sea area of Ajaria, where Shevardnadze ally Aslan Abashidze is regional governor.

Mr Abashidze is leader of the Revival Party, a former opponent of Mr Shevardnadze who has backed the president's attempts to face down the opposition protests.

Parliament

The protesters marched to the capital's parliament building, focus of much of the opposition action.

Georgia's parliament remains under heavy police guard

The BBC's Chloe Arnold in Tbilisi says most of the people who crowded into the Palace of Sport at the start of the march were not actually Mr Shevardnadze's supporters.

They were members of the Revival Party, and appeared unclear what they were doing there, she said.

"I'm not interested in politics," a man called Kakha told the BBC after he had been handed a banner, which read: "We support the Georgian Government."

"I'm just here to defend my country," he said.

Mikhail Saakashvili, the leader of the largest opposition bloc, the National Movement, has repeatedly demanded Mr Shevardnadze's resignation.

Provisional results showed Mr Shevardnadze's For a New Georgia bloc and the Revival Party in first and second place, contrasting with exit polls which suggested majority opposition support.

International election observers from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe said they found "spectacular" irregularities.