Chairman of the United National Movement (UNM) opposition party Levan Khabeishvili has called on other members of this party to gather at its central office in Tbilisi on Monday evening to draw up a plan of action to secure the release of former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili from custody.

Khabeishvili told reporters earlier that "the most radical measures will be taken" to have Saakashvili released from custody.

The Tbilisi City Court on Monday ordered Saakashvili to remain in custody and rejected his defense team's motion to defer the ex-president's prison sentence due to his illness.