A 34-year-old Georgian transgender woman has died in a Tbilisi clinic after succumbing to injuries inflicted on her during an assault in October.
Zizi (formerly Zurab) Shekeladze was hit several times by a concrete bar and her throat was slashed by a blade several times in the Georgian capital on October 14. She had been hospitalized since then.
A man suspected in the attack, Giorgi Murjikneli, was arrested and charged with attempted murder on October 15.
A preliminary hearing into his case is scheduled for early December.
LGBT rights defenders in Georgia have demanded the suspect be charged with a "hate crime."
Although homosexuality and gender-change are legal in Georgia, society's view of the LGBT minority remains negative.
In 2013, Georgian LGBT activists were severely beaten up in Tbilisi after trying to hold a rally against homophobia.
