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The Armenian Report’s correspondent is in Artsakh to cover the large rally in the capital of Stepanakert.
The Armenian citizens gathered at the rally today are concerned, however they hope that the Armenians living in Artsakh, Armenia, and Diaspora will unite and not allow Azerbaijan to achieve its goal and Artsakh to be annexed to Azerbaijan.
"We are going to fight, Artsakh was Armenian, is Armenian and will remain Armenian, no negotiator has the right to put up with the opposite opinion," noted the citizens gathered at the rally.
The people of Artsakh emphasized that they will fight for the world to accept the independence of Artsakh.
Many Artsakh citizens emphasized that they do not believe that Azerbaijan is ready for real peace.
It should be noted that according to the data of the National Assembly of Artsakh, about 40 thousand citizens participated in the rally on Sunday, October 30.
There were a large number of young people in the press saying that they will not allow the blood shed by the men who died in the last Artsakh battle to be in vain.
song: Sevak Khanagyan - Artsakh
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Last month Armenia adopted new gun laws.
The Armenian Report went on the streets of Yerevan to ask its citizens what they think of the new law that will allow Armenian citizens to carry weapons.
The adoption of this law in Armenia has given rise to many controversial opinions. Some say it will help the country better defend itself in the wake of the 2020 military defeat to Azerbaijan. While opponents of the bill worry that it could lead to an increase in gun-related crime in the country.
The people we spoke with told us different opinions on gun laws.
One person said that carrying a weapon is important in Armenia while someone else said that that number of crimes will increase in the country.
A few others mentioned that it’s important for soldiers to have guns and not civilians.
To watch the full report, go to The Armenian Report YouTube account, subscribe and watch.
The U.S. is pleased by the meeting of the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan in Prague, Vedant Patel, Principal Deputy Spokesman for the Department of State said at a daily briefing on C-SPAN yesterday.
“We welcome the efforts of President Macron and European Council President Michel to build momentum behind a comprehensive peace process. And we are particularly pleased with progress on an EU observer mission to the region, and this mission has the potential to build confidence between both sides and continues to bolster negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the Spokesman said.
Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan and President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev met on October 6, 2022 in Prague, within the framework of the first meeting of the European Political Community held at the initiative of the President of the Republic of France and the President of the European Council.
Armenia and Azerbaijan confirmed their commitment to the UN Charter and the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, through which both sides recognize each other’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. They confirmed that this will form the basis for the work of the commissions on delimitation and that the next meeting of these commissions will take place in Brussels by the end of October.
Armenia expressed its agreement to facilitate the EU civilian mission along the border with Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan agreed to cooperate with the mentioned mission to the extent it will be concerned. The mission will start its work in October, for a maximum period of two months. The purpose of the mission will be to build confidence and, through its reports, support the border commissions.
Armenia is among the 44 countries participating in the first summit of the European Political Community (EPC), a new political platform created by the European Union.
During this summit, photos and videos have appeared online showing Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan holding an informal meeting with Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
Also seated at the table are Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu.
French President Emmanuel Macron is also seen walking up to the table and greeting everyone.
Pashinyan is currently in a four-party meeting with Aliyev, Macron and European Council President Charles Michel.
Then a meeting between Pashinyan and Erdogan.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has ruled out Russia’s membership in the EPC.
"This meeting is looking for a new world order without Russia,” Borrell announced.
The EU Council reports the summit’s agenda includes, “Issues such as peace and security, the economic situation, energy and climate, as well as migration and mobility."
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Two years ago, on September 27th, Armenians woke up to war. Azerbaijan was attacking the Armenians living in Artsakh. The all-out war lasted six weeks, killing thousands of people, hundreds of people are missing, hundreds taken captivity, thousands displaced from their homes. The devastation is still felt across the Armenian nation until today.
With Turkey’s support and foreign mercenaries, the Azerbaijani military launched a war of conquest, with indiscriminate bombardments of towns and cities of Artsakh, including the capital city of Stepanakert.
Azerbaijan destroyed villages, homes, churches, even bombing the maternity hospital in Stepanakert.
During the entire course of the war, the Azerbaijani military used prohibited munitions against Artsakh, including against civilians. Large-scale evidence exists on torture committed by the Azeri authorities against Armenian captives.
On the night of November 9-10, Armenia and Azerbaijan signed a Russia-backed ceasefire agreement ending the war.
The ceasefire agreement deployed around 2000 Russian peacekeepers to Artsakh.
To this day, Azerbaijan refuses to implement the agreements of the ceasefire and hasn’t returned all Armenian captives. After its provocative actions in Artsakh, Azerbaijan has also started an open aggression against Armenia. In May 2021, the Azerbaijani forces infiltrated into Armenia’s sovereign territory and have not pulled back till now. On September 13, 2022 Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military attack on Armenia from several directions, targeting also the civilian settlements. A ceasefire was achieved with the involvement of the international community, but the situation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border still remains tense.
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This week a new video surfaced from Azerbaijan showing how they shot and killed an Armenian servicemen during the 2020 Artsakh war.
The video has gone viral in Armenia due to the Armenian serviceman’s bravery while facing a group of Azerbaijanis.
Today, attorney Siranush Sahakyan identified the man in the video as Taron Andreasyan.
“According to the information collected and the representative of the Armenian captives in Azerbaijan at the ECHR, lawyer Siranush Sahakyan, Taron is our compatriot in the well-known video who had stood alone against the Azerbaijani company and died. By comparing the facts at hand, colors, previous photos of the guy, as well as information provided by his comrade-in-arms, we can conclude with 95% probability that the young man is Taron Andreasyan. The rest of the information will come later, since we are working on it,” wrote activist Tigran Vardanyan.
Armenia’s Defense Ministry earlier had said that they have started the identification process but have not yet confirmed.
The story that Andreasyan’s friends are sharing is that Taron argued with the command in Armenia’s N military unit about why they did not take them to the border, after that the command made a decision to move their military unit to Sanasar.
Another fellow soldier has said that Taron was appointed the commander of their military unit and when they received the order to retreat in Sanasar, Taron did not retreat and remained alone. And that is how Taron came to face Azeris all by himself.
Andreasyan was from Armenia’s Ararat region. He lived in Russia for many years and came back to volunteer and participate in the 44-day Artsakh war.
Rest In Peace.
Azerbaijani construction workers continue working on the new, temporary road connecting Artsakh to Armenia. There is also an Azerbaijani military base near the route that Armenians are currently using.
While traveling along the temporary route connecting Artsakh to Armenia, The Armenian Report film crew came across Azerbaijani vehicles and Azerbaijani persons on the route.
The current route opened for operation on August 30, 2022. And its plan was that Russian peacekeepers would be stationed on the 4.7 km road along with on duty Artsakh police officers. However, policemen from Artsakh do not have the right to inspect cargo — only the Russian peacekeepers are given that right.
It’s important to note, that the head of the Hin Shen community of Artsakh told Azatutyun media that there is an Azerbaijani base a few hundred meters from the new road, from which they have already thrown stones in the direction of the new road that Armenians are using.
The Artsakh Ministry of Internal Affairs told The Armenian Report that the presence of Azerbaijanis is due to the fact that road construction works are still underway.
"Since they built it themselves, the furnishing work is still going on. There are Azerbaijanis on the road, but our police officers are conducting enhanced surveillance. The road is safe, Russian peacekeepers are deployed," the ministry assured us.
The Armenian Report also contacted the press officer of the Artsakh Security Council.
We were told that Russian peacekeepers have not fully relocated their checkpoints from the old Lachin corridor to the new road.
The presence of Azerbaijani vehicles on the new road is due to the participation in the process of moving Russian peacekeeping troops to relocate their checkpoints.
“It has also been agreed with the authorities of Artsakh. Everything is going on safely," said the Security Council of Artsakh to The Armenian Report.
Today, on September 2, a march and a rally dedicated to the 31st anniversary of the Republic of Artsakh was organized in Stepanakert.
The Armenian Report traveled to Artsakh to capture the commemoration.
Thousands of Artsakhtsis marched from Freedom Square to Revival Square, where the rally was held.
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Provocations by Turkish nationals inside Armenia continue.
Yesterday two Turkish citizens were detained in the town of Vedi, in Armenia’s Ararat Province after an altercation reported by local citizens.
"Today there was an incident with the Turks in Vedi.
The Turks organized a party here in Vedi, drank cognac, insulted Armenians. There was a clash with the locals. The police are on the scene,” wrote a local from Vedi online explaining the situation.
The Armenian Report spoke with Zarzand Gabrielyan, head of the public relations and information department of Armenia’s police, who confirmed to us that the Turkish nationals were taken to the Ararat Police Department after the provocations.
"We received a call that two foreign citizens were behaving suspiciously in Vedi’s Arakel Simonyan Square. The police brought those citizens to the department, collected factual information, and then transferred it to the preliminary investigation body,” Gabrielyan told The Armenian Report today.
He also mentioned that the case was transferred to Armenia’s Investigative Committee.
The Armenian Report also spoke with Vardan Tadevosyan, press spokesperson of Armenia’s Investigative Committee, who told us that materials are being prepared at the moment.
"The case has been entered into proceedings, and the participants in the incident are a Turkish couple," Tadevosyan added.
We would like to remind our readers that the state border between Armenia and Turkey continues to be closed per Turkey’s preconditions.
Turkey has put forward two preconditions: Armenia must recognize the Turkish-Armenian border, which was established under the Treaty of Kars in 1921, that is, waive territorial claims, as well as put an end to the process of international recognition of the Armenian genocide.
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On Tuesday, August 30 — The parents of the servicemen who died in the 44-day Artsakh war held an action in front of the Prosecutor General's Office in Yerevan, demanding the arrest of PM Nikol Pashinyan.
According to the parents, everything should be done so that the meeting between Pashinyan-Michel-Aliyev in Brussels on August 31 will not take place.
"We were informed that Pashinyan is going to Brussels tomorrow for a meeting. But he should not represent the Armenian people, he has no right to do so. We demand that the Prosecutor General prevent his actions as soon as possible. He will make new commitments. Our sons shed their blood for their native land," the parents said.
The parents did not rule out that Nikol Pashinyan could sign a new document and not inform the public about it.
Full video available on The Armenian Report’s YouTube page. Please subscribe and watch for free. https://youtu.be/6Td-YQ0MpNU
EXCLUSIVE REPORT: The Armenian Report team took a trip to the Armenia-Turkey border villages to meet the residents who live in the Bagaran community of Armavir Province in Armenia. Bagaran borders with Turkey.
Farmers in the villages located on the Armenia-Turkey border in Armenia are facing many problems related to water issues, as well as the unhindered access to their farm plots.
An Armenian agronomist from Bagaran, Gevorg Sahakyan, told The Armenian Report that most of the lands belonging to the villagers are located on the border, surrounded by barbed wire. In order for them to access their farms they need to provide border guards a passport. Sahakyan appeals to the government through this interview with The Armenian Report — asking them to address the process in which passports get issued. Otherwise their crop, which is essentially their livelihood, is left to rot.
Sahakyan also referred to our question about the opening of the Armenia-Turkey border.
Watch video with English subtitles.
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On the morning of August 26, Azerbaijani military units entered Berdzor and Aghavno communities of Kashatagh region of Artsakh.
The president of Azerbaijan also wrote on Twitter that the Lachin Corridor is under their control.
Responding to this information from Artsakh, they noted that in reality, the section of the Lachin Corridor road is still under the control of Russian peacekeepers.
The Artsakh Ministry of Internal Affairs informs that the Shushi-Berdzor-Goris section of the interstate highway connecting Artsakh to Armenia will operate until the end of August 31 end of day.
Despite Azerbaijani military units entering Artsakh’s communities, the interstate highway is still under the control of Russian peacekeepers and available for Armenians until the last day of this month.
The active shooter inside of Masis Municipality has committed suicide.
The Armenian police report that shots were fired during the negotiations with the armed person. The chief officers of the special purpose police department, headed by the first deputy of the RA police, Aram Hovhannisyan, went inside and found the body of 36-year-old Edward Margaryan with a gunshot wound to the head.
There are no casualties or injuries among the policemen.
Margaryan was a former employee of the Masis Municipality.
BREAKING: An armed person has broken into the building of the Masis Municipality of Ararat province in Armenia, threw a grenade from the office of the mayor of Masis, and is currently shooting irregularly.
The guard and the cleaner were in the building of the municipality and they have been safely evacuated.
According to preliminary information, there are no casualties, at the moment only the armed citizen is in the building.
According to preliminary information, the person who broke into the municipality is a former member of the Council of Elders. His name is Edgar Markaryan.
At this moment, his mother has arrived on the scene and she’s appealing to her son to surrender.
Second resident of Artsakh’s Aghavno village has burned his house down before surrendering his home to Azerbaijan.
Arman Hayrapetyan, the brother of Mher Hayrapetyan, who became a hero in the 44-day war, burned his house in Aghavno.
His eldest son, Rudik, also participated in the 44-day war, and his youngest son is currently serving in the army.
"I told everyone that if they want, they should not give the ten million in compensation, I don't need it, I need my sanctity, that my wife slept in this house, I slept, my child, the Turk should not sleep,” Hayrapetyan is heard saying.
It should be noted that earlier Aram Isakhanyan, a participant in the Artsakh war, burned his house in Aghavno, whose uncle and friends were killed during military operations. Some representatives of the Armenian community in the United States have initiated a fundraising effort to buy a house for him.
Residents of Aghavno and Berdzor have been advised to surrender their homes to Azerbaijan by August 25. They have been promised a monetary compensation. But they have been warned that if they burn their homes, they will not receive the promised “certificate” which either provides them with housing elsewhere or monitory compensation towards housing in either Armenia or Artsakh.
Armenian singer Aram Mp3 was scheduled to have a concert in Yerevan today but he has made the decision to postpone it due to the Surmalu mall blast on Sunday which has left seven people dead, 21 missing, and 61 injured.
“For obvious reasons I am canceling today's concert and rescheduling it for an unknown period,” Aram MP3 announced this on his official Instagram account.
“At the moment, my only wish is for there to be as few losses as possible. There are still people under the rubble. Let's all pray that everyone survives. Thank you for your understanding," the singer said.
This comes after a concert was held in Yerevan despite the deadly explosion where a Russian woman was seen going on stage and reminding the concert goers of what their compatriots are experiencing just a few blocks away.
Rescuers in Armenia have recovered another body from Sunday’s explosion at Yerevan’s Surmalu shopping center, reports Spokesperson of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Hayk Kostanyan.
This brings the victim count to seven.
As a result of the August 14 blast, 21 citizens remain considered missing.
“Search and rescue operations are ongoing," Kostanyan said.
The Armenian Report was on the scene where 350 rescuers and 150 volunteers are aiding in the search efforts.
The total number of victims is 61.
13 victims continue to be treated in different hospitals, their health condition is assessed as satisfactory.
21 vehicles were also pulled out from under the rubble.
The number of casualties from Surmalu mall explosion in Yerevan is now three. Over 60 people injured in the hospital and 20 people reported missing.
The search and rescue operations are moving slowly, because, presumably, there may be survivors under the rubble, which does not allow the use of heavy equipment. Levon Sardaryan, press spokesman of the mayor of Yerevan, reports.
“Thus the search and rescue works are carried out manually. At certain intervals, a moment of silence is announced in order to listen to the voices of all the people who remained under the rubble. At the same time, the fire in the depths has not gone out and the poisonous smoke does not allow to approach the epicenter of the explosion,” said Sardaryan.
Two people killed, 60 people reportedly injured among them children and pregnant woman after massive explosion in Yerevan market.
The injured have been transported to a nearby hospital.
Among the casualties is a man and a woman.
Twenty citizens have alerted the Ministry of Emergency Situations that they could not find their relatives.
Along with more than 20 rescue operations, hundreds of citizens are also participating in the evacuation and firefighting operations.
The explosion took place at a fireworks store in side of Sumarlu mall in Yerevan. A fire broke out where fireworks were being stored. A three-story warehouse building has collapsed. The cause of the fire is unknown.
Search operations are continuing.
At the moment there is danger that the entire three story building may collapse.
Surmalu mall is located near the city center.
A massive explosion at Surmalu trade center in Yerevan.
There are two fatalities and 50 people reportedly injured. The injured have been transported to a nearby hospital. Three minor children are among the injured.
The explosion took place at a fireworks store. A fire broke out where fireworks were being stored. A three-story warehouse building has collapsed. The cause of the fire is unknown.
Firefighters, doctors and rescuers have been dispatched to the scene.
Search operations continue.
At the moment there is danger that the entire three story building may collapse.
Surmalu mall is located near the city center.
On Monday, August 8 The Armenian Report’s correspondent Ani Gevorgyan was denied access into Artsakh.
Upon waiting to hear from the base commander, the Russian peacekeepers gave Ani permission to go inside the church in Aghavno.
We would like to remind our readers that the residents of Aghavno have been given until August 25 to surrender their homes to occupying Azerbaijan. Our team was headed to Berdzor and Aghanov to cover the events taking place in the region. However, our reporter was denied access.
According to Hovik Avanesov, head of Stepanakert University's Center for Caucasian Studies, Azerbaijan intends to convert this church into a mosque, along with all other other churches they will soon be occupying.
"Given the fact that under all international conventions, the destruction or transformation of such heritage into other structures is considered not only cultural genocide, but also a war crime,” Avanesov told news.am.
The Armenian Report’s correspondent Ani Gevorgyan was denied access into Artsakh to cover the Berdzor and Aghavno surrender.
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The team at The Armenian Report cut their summer vacation short to hurry back to work.
Our correspondent Ani Gevorgyan and camera operator Erik Tovmasyan headed to Artsakh’s Berdzor and Aghavno villages for coverage.
They headed out at 5am on Monday morning and arrived at Aghavno around 9:30am. They were greeted by Russian peacekeepers at the border. Upon handing their Armenian passports to the peacekeepers, our correspondent Ani was told that she cannot enter Artsakh. When they asked why, she was told there are reporters whose entry into Artsakh is forbidden. And only the base commander can provide further details. The team waited for over two hours for the base commander to come by so they can speak with him directly but he never showed.
We’re told the Russian peacekeepers were trying to be respectful by offering the team water and allowed Ani to enter the church in the vicinity.
However, the team was forced to drive Ani back to Goris where she worked from a nearby hotel.
During her wait Ani was able to establish contact with Artsakh’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Davit Babayan.
Babayan assured Ani that Artsakh has not submitted any list to the Russian peacekeepers and the citizens of Armenia should enter Artsakh without any hindrance.
And then Ani contacted Armenia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs who said that they also did not present any list, and no clarification was presented until now.
The Human Rights Defender's Office was contacted and Ani was urged to submit a written complaint.
Moscow has not yet seen Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's proposals for specifying details of the Russian peacekeeping mission's work in Nagorno-Karabakh, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told reporters on Friday reports TASS.
"I find it difficult to answer this question because we have not seen the specific proposals that the Armenian Prime Minister wants to discuss in the context of the Russian peacekeeping operation in Nagorno-Karabakh, so I cannot guess now," Lavrov said in response to a request to comment on Pashinyan's statements on the urgent need to specify the Russian peacekeeping mission in Karabakh, "Any of the sides have the right to propose additional initiatives, it has been agreed by the presidents of Russia and Azerbaijan and the Armenian Prime Minister. So far we have not seen any."
Earlier, Pashinyan said that the events in Artsakh raise questions about the activities of Russian peacekeepers. The Prime Minister said that he considered the presence and activities of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno Karabakh a key factor for ensuring security of Armenians, and highly rated the Russian efforts to ensure security and stability in the region. According to the head of the Armenian Cabinet of Ministers, Yerevan expects Russian peacekeepers to put an end to any attempt of violating the line of contact in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The Russian Defense Ministry announced that the situation in the area of responsibility of Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh has worsened.
According to the ministry, the Azerbaijani armed forces violated the ceasefire near the Yeghtsahogh hill. The peacekeepers' command, together with representatives of the Azerbaijani and Armenian sides, take measures to stabilize the situation.
Minister of Territorial Administration and Infrastructures of Artsakh Hayk Khanumyan has warned the residents of Aghavno that they should leave Aghavno on August 25.
Andranik Chavushyan, the village head of Aghavno village in Artsakh, told The Armenian Report about this.
"Residents feel betrayed. They feel like they’re without an owner. We knew this day would happen, but we still had some hope. We fought and fought. But Nikol took the soldiers from Artsakh to surrender,” Chavushyan told The Armenian Report.
The mayor said that Azerbaijanis say that they built the road, they finished it, and the problem is not whether the Armenian side has built another road or not.
"They demand that the road should be handed over,” Chavushyan said.
Eight men have been arrested after a group of protesters stormed the Azerbaijani embassy in London, reports the British Metro newspaper.
Footage on social media showed men waving flags from the balcony of the country’s base in Kensington.
Slogans in Arabic have been daubed on the wall and the Azerbaijani flag was taken down.
It’s unclear what sparked the protest but it was led by a group called The Mahdi Servants Union.
It is a Shia Muslim organization based in London which says it wants to establish ‘civilizational dominance’ on its website.
Its leader Yasser Al-Habib is a controversial cleric whose film The Lady Of Heaven had to be pulled from UK cinemas earlier this year after protests from some Sunni Muslims offended by its interpretation of Islamic history.
Members linked to the group have cited ‘persecution’ by the Azerbaijani government of some Shia Muslims in the country.
In a statement, the group said it had been directed by their leader ‘to take urgent action’ against Azerbaijan president Ilham Aliyev.
Al-Habib, who was granted asylum in the UK after coming into conflict with the authorities in his native Kuwait, runs a mosque in Buckinghamshire.
The vast majority of Azerbaijanis are Shia Muslims but the country is largely secular.
Iran’s embassy in London previously accused the group of attack on its property in 2018.
A Met spokesperson said officers were sent to the building after receiving ‘reports of protestors who had entered the premises’ at around 4.30pm.
They added: ‘Officers attended and engaged with those present.
‘Eight men were arrested on suspicion of trespass and criminal damage. They were taken into custody where they remain.
No injuries were reported. Enquiries are ongoing.
Q & A SERIES | Episode 4: Tourists loving their summer 2022 vacation in Armenia
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A large number of tourists from different countries of the world vacation in Armenia. Many Diaspora Armenians also prefer to spend their summer vacation in Armenia.
The Armenian Report spoke to tourists in Yerevan to find out about their experience vacationing in Armenia. Armenians from the Diaspora and foreigners said that in Armenia, travel is affordable, there are many attractions, the food is delicious, and the people are hospitable.
Diaspora Armenians who participated in our Q & A emphasized that they want to stay in Armenia, but since they have already settled in other countries, it’s hard for them to leave everything that they have established and return back to the Homeland.
Details in the video on Youtube.
Vardavar is a loved holiday in Armenia.
On this day, people pour water on each other, regardless of age.
Children and adults play together and have fun.
This is a wonderful holiday that is usually celebrated with the whole family and loved ones.
It is common to see people pouring buckets of water from balconies on unsuspecting people walking below them.
The festival is very popular among children as it is one day where they can get away with pulling pranks.
It is also a means of refreshment on the usually hot and dry summer days of July.
Although now a Christian tradition, celebrating the transfiguration of Jesus Christ (the Feast of the Transfiguration), Vardavar's history dates back to pagan times.
The ancient festival is traditionally associated with the goddess Astghik, who was the goddess of water, beauty, love, and fertility.
The festivities associated with this religious observance of Astghik were named “Vartavar” because Armenians offered her roses as a celebration (vart means "rose" in Armenian and var mean "rise"), this is why it was celebrated in the harvest time.
Vardavar is generally celebrated 98 days (14 weeks) after Easter in the republic. In some regions, however, it is held on different days, and traditions differ too.
Opposition activist Narek Mantashyan, who was held in custody for more than seven months, was released from an Armenian jail today.
During today’s court hearing, the court ordered bail.
The bail was set for 20 million Armenian drams ($48,123.19 USD).
Mantashyan’s bail was paid and he was released on the same day.
After leaving prison, Mantashyan stated that the court decision was delayed, but at least it was fair.
To remind, Mantashyan was charged with the article of organizing mass riots. Mantashyan does not accept the accusation against him and qualifies it as a political persecution against him.
His attorney Alexander Kochubaev regularly made statements that his client's health condition remains serious, diabetes has affected his vital organs. The other day Mantashyan was transferred from the prison to the hospital.
After the death of producer Armen Grigoryan, actions took place, citizens demanded the release of political prisoners, including Mantashyan, so that the fate of Grigoryan would not be repeated. An action was also held in front of the UN office in Yerevan.
video credit: Agnessa Khamoyan
