Georgian Interior Minister Irakli Okruashvili said on August 19 that the Georgian troops "attacked and took over several positions" formally occupied by South Ossetian militias around the Java district of the breakaway South Ossetia.

"Georgian troops launched an attack at 6 am this morning, which succeeded in taking over of several important positions," Okruashvili said in a phone interview broadcasted live by the Rustavi 2 television on August 19.

He said that the positions taken over by the Georgian troops are of strategic importance.

"Georgian villages were bombed and attacked from these very strongholds. Now I can say that after taking over these positions, bombardment of the Georgian villages will be stopped," Okruashvili said.

He also said that 8 Cossacks fighting on the South Ossetian side were killed. Okruashvili said he had no information regarding casualties among the Ossetian fighters. No casualties were reported from the Georgian side either.

Georgian Deputy Security Minister Gigi Ugulava also said that the positions, which were attacked, are located on the hills around the Georgian villages in the conflict zone.

"On the other hand, these hills are also important because the South Ossetian militias’ positions are clearly seen near the Java district from these hills," Gigi Ugulava told Rustavi 2 television.

The Java district which lies north of the separatist capital Tskhinvali and borders Russia, serves as a major stronghold for the South Ossetian militias.

Tskhinvali, the Capital of breakaway South Ossetia, is mainly surrounded by villages populated by ethnic Georgians. The main road that links Tskhinvali to the strategic Roki Pass, which, in turn, connects South Ossetia with Russia, travels through several Georgian villages. Owing to this fact, the Java district is much more accessible from the Roki Pass than the capital of the breakaway region. As a result the Java district became the main foothold for South Ossetian separatists.