The Georgian military has pulled its troops from Tskhinvali, the capital of separatist province South Ossetia.

Georgian troops have pulled back to the positions they held before Thursday when they launched an operation into South Ossetia.

Thousands of Russian troops moved into the area, military officials confirmed Sunday

The Georgian national council chief said the withdrawal was a show of goodwill, aimed at encouraging Russia to accept a cease-fire.

The official said about 200 Georgian soldiers and 37 Georgian civilians have died so far in Russia attacks.

Earlier Russian forces had launched an airstrike against a military airfield near the Tbilisi International Airport.

The attack near the Georgian capital city came after a day of intense fighting which saw dozens of Russian warplanes bombing civilian and military targets in Georgia on yesterday.

Alexander Lomaia, secretary of Georgia's National Security Council, said dozens of Georgian troops had lost their lives.

The situation in South Ossetia escalated rapidly from Thursday, when Georgia said it launched an operation into the region after its unilateral cease-fire was met with artillery fire from separatists that killed 10 people, including peacekeepers and civilians. It accused Russia of backing the separatists.

Russian tanks began rolling into Georgia on Thursday night.

Russia said this was to prevent ethnic cleansing and genocide within South Ossetia.