12:05,
STEPANAKERT, APRIL 21, ARMENPRESS. 6 new cases of coronavirus (COVID-19) have been confirmed in the Republic of Artsakh in the past 24 hours.
131 coronavirus tests have been carried out on April 20, the ministry of healthcare of Artsakh said.
Currently, 32 infected patients receive treatment in hospitals.
On April 19 the vaccinations against COVID-19 have launched in Artsakh.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
Armenia’s prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan referred at the consultation in Syunik’s governor’s office to the incident that happened today in Meghri.
“It is obvious that violation of law has occurred and I expect the law enforcement bodies to respond to it clearly and roughly as a small group of people cannot be allowed to create impression, apart from the impression, atmosphere of impunity should not be allowed in Armenia,” he said.
Pashinyan instructed the chiefs of the NSS and Police settle the issue, punish the guilty.
“Go and deal with the issues,” Pashinyan told them.
Public Radio of Armenia The return of Armenian prisoners of war is a human rights issue, not a political one, Armenian MP Vladimir Vardanyan said in a speech at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). He reminded that more than 200 Armenian prisoners of war are still under Azerbaijani custody. “We have reasonable grounds to believe that their lives are endangered and they may be subject to torture and inhuman treatment,” the lawmaker said. He stressed that the return of POWs is not a political issue, it’s an issue of human rights, an issue of democracy, and their rights should be respected.
Armenia’s Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan alone with the President has visited Shurnukh village in Syunik province of Armenia.
As the Ombudsman’s Office reported, the locals have raised security issues among the main challenges they face. Their concerns occurred as a result of illegal presence of Azerbaijani servicemen on the road leading to the community. They also face many social issues, the Ombudsman’s Office said.
“As a result of border processes after the war some people have been deprived of their apartments, agricultural lands and pasture. Due to the presence of Azerbaijanis, some people deprived of their houses have raised issues concerning the construction of new houses. The Human Rights Defender reaffirmed his commitment to develop concept of demilitarized security zone in Syunik region for ensuring the protection of human rights.”
It is noted that the Ombudsman’s Office along with the Office of the RA President will sum up the results of their visit and implement join steps.
On 14 April, the Permanent Representative of Armenia Mher Margaryan addressed a letter to the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres regarding the inauguration of the so-called “military trophy park” in Baku displaying a most dehumanizing “collection” of grotesque wax figures portraying ethnic Armenians, as well as a macabre exhibition of helmets, equipment and personal belongings of the Armenian soldiers murdered during the 44-day war.
“The celebration of human death and suffering at the highest political level in Baku through the propagation of denigrating, dehumanizing imagery of ethnic Armenians is yet another manifestation of the state-led policies of inciting anti-Armenian hatred and is an overt demonstration of a genocidal intent”, Ambassador Margaryan states in the letter.
KHOJAVAND, Azerbaijan, Apr.17
By Elchin Mehdiyev – Trend:
Armenia falsified, destroyed and appropriated Caucasian Albania temples during the occupation of Azerbaijani lands, Deputy Head of Azerbaijan’s Albanian-Udi Christian Religious Community Rafik Danakari said.
Danakari made the remark at a monastery within trip of the community members to Khojavand district’s Tugh village, Trend reports on Apr.17.
“Today is a saint day,” he noted. “It was pleasant to visit this monastery for the first time, while sad because we saw how Armenia falsified, destroyed and appropriated all this. Nevertheless, today we are performing here rituals in the Udi language, light candles, and read prayers,” added the official.
The Albanian-Udi Christian religious community is the successor to the Albanian Autocephalous Apostolic Church in the Caucasus.
Azerbaijan had liberated the Tugh village from Armenian occupation as a result of the 44-day Second Karabakh war (from late Sept. through early Nov. 2020).
13:15,
YEREVAN, APRIL 15, ARMENPRESS. 5 on-duty military servicemen were run over by a motorist near the village of Aramus around 02:00 April 15, the Defense Ministry said.
Senior Sergeant Aram Badalyan (born 1988) and Sergeant Levon Mkrtumyan (born 1992) were killed instantly by the impact.
Another serviceman is hospitalized at the central military hospital. He is in a serious condition. The two other victims suffered no injuries and have returned to their service location after passing a medical examination.
Police said the motorist who struck the servicemen had fled the scene.
A 33-year-old suspect who was driving a Mercedes sedan was apprehended hours after the incident. Police didn’t say whether or not they suspect the incident to be a vehicle-ramming attack or a hit-and-run.
The Defense Ministry released a statement, offering condolences to the families of the two servicemen who died.
The servicemen were conducting a march at the time of the incident.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Armenia’s PM Appeals to Putin for Help With Karabakh Prisoners of War
Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in Moscow, Russia April 7, 2021. Sputnik/Mikhail Klimentyev/Kremlin via REUTERSREUTERS
MOSCOW (REUTERS) – Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Wednesday appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to help with the release of prisoners of war who were captured during fighting with Azeri forces during last year’s Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.
Pashinyan, who travelled to Moscow to meet the Russian leader, also said that he hoped Armenia would be able to acquire large quantities of Russian vaccines against COVID-19.
(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
11:28, 8 April, 2021
YEREVAN, APRIL 8, ARMENPRESS. The first batch of the Russian Sputnik-V vaccine against COVID-19 was brought to Armenia, the Yerevan office of Russia’s Federal Agency for the Commonwealth of Independent States Affairs, Compatriots Living Abroad, and International Humanitarian Cooperation reported.
In the first phase, people eligible for vaccination are those who are at-risk.
“I’d like to note that this is the continuation of the large scale assistance which is being provided to Armenia in fighting the coronavirus. This is the brightest example of the close cooperation and brotherly relations between our nations,” said Pavel Kurochkin, the Adviser at the Russian Embassy in Armenia.
Earlier it was reported that the first batch consists of 15000 doses of Sputnik-V.
Before this, Russia had donated a small number of the vaccine to Armenia in early 2021 and it was used for voluntary vaccinations among health workers.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan