 Abkhaz Deputy Minister of Defense Garri Kupalba said on late 11 August that there were 2,500 Georgian troops in the Kodori gorge, but 1,000 civilians had fled the area through a humanitarian corridor, which had been opened for civilians and soldiers to get out safely before the operation to eliminate Georgian troops would begin.Georgian and Russian officials said that Russian troops had appeared in Poti, though Russia claimed they had only sent in "a reconnaissance mission".The Georgian foreign ministry stated that more than 50 Russian planes had entered the Georgian airspace.