Unknown assailants fired a shot from a grenade launcher at the apartment of South Ossetian Prosecutor General Taimuraz Khugayev early on Tuesday in what the country's leader described as a "provocation."
The attack took place at 5:10 Moscow time. No injuries were reported, but the blast left a 20 by 30 cm hole in the building's wall and shattered windows in several apartments.
President Eduard Kokoity said the attack was "a deliberate provocation" aimed at heating up tensions in the country, hit by a wave of protests against the results of the November 27 runoff presidential elections.
"We won't let anyone escalate the situation. At the same time, people who committed this crime and forces behind them will be punished," Kokoity said.
"However, I would like to call on everyone to stay calm," he added. "This provocation was aimed at bringing the ongoing discussions out of the legal framework. Our task is not to let this happen," he said.
Preliminary results showed that opposition leader Alla Dzhioyeva, also the former education minister, won a runoff against Kremlin-backed rival Anatoly Bibilov.
But the republic's Supreme Court on canceled the outcome of the elections last week, citing violations.
Dzhioyeva has declared herself president despite the court's ruling and her supporters have been rallying on the central square of the capital, Tskhinvali, ever since.
