Roki Tunnel
According to "Kommersant", at around 16:00, it became known that two tank columns of the 58th Army passed the Roki Tunnel and Java and were on the road to Tskhinvali. The column had begun moving towards South Ossetia at the same time as President Medvedev was giving a televised speech. According to the official version, they were "aid for peacekeeping forces, who have suffered serious losses". According to "Kommersant", the Russian units had been stationed near the South Ossetian border in Alagirsky District for the past few weeks. According to "Kommersant", at around 17:00, Russian tanks columns bypassed Tskhinvali and began bombing the Georgian fortifications. The secretary of the Security Council of South Ossetia Anatoly Barankevich stated that the Georgians were leaving Tshvinvali.