Georgian police on Wednesday raided the offices of an opposition party and arrested its leader in an apparent attempt to squelch a wave of mass protests triggered by the governing party’s decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union.

STORY: A news camera captured the moment masked police in the Georgian capital Tbilisi detained the leader of one of the country's four main opposition parties - carrying what appeared to be his unmoving body into a waiting vehicle.

The leader of Georgia's main opposition party has been detained by police in the capital Tbilisi after being knocked to the ground and falling unconscious, his party said, the most high-profile in a sweeping wave of arrests of senior opposition figures.

Vision released by the Coalition for Change party shows Nika Gvaramia being carried by the arms and legs by several men and thrown into a car.

Separately, the Interpress news agency said that two members of another opposition party, Strong Georgia, had been detained by the police. A leader of Georgian youth protest movement Dafioni was also arrested, Georgian media reported. Kobakhidze, the prime minister, has repeatedly praised the police for their response to the protests.

Local media in Georgia reported that police carried out raids targeting the offices of several opposition groups and non-governmental organizations.

Georgian police have raided the offices of an opposition party and arrested its leader in an apparent attempt to squelch a wave of mass protests over the decision to suspend negotiations on joining th

Nika Gvaramia, 48, a leader from one of four opposition groups, was carried away by his arms and legs by police officers from his party HQ in a side street next to parliament in the capital Tbilisi. Demonstrations have been held every night since last Thursday,