Author: Maghakian Mike

Asbarez: Israel Bombs Apartment Near Beirut’s Bourdj Hammoud Neighborhood

Maghakian Mike
by Asbarez Staff

 

 March 13, 2026

 

in Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories

The apartment building at the center of the Israeli attack near Bourdj Hammoud


In the early hours of Friday Israel bombed an apartment building on the border between the Nappa-Mirna Shaluhi districts. These districts are also very close to the Armenian-populated Bourdj Hammoud neighborhood, which fortunately suffered no material or human losses. Some of the residents there heard the explosions from the bombing attack.

Shahan Kandaharian, editor-in-chief of our sister publication the Aztag newspaper, reported on the incident, noting that it is very worrying that the area near Bourdj Hammoud has been targeted.

According to reports, the target of the Israeli side was the apartment where a member of Hezbollah allegedly lived.

Kandaharian assured that there is no panic, but there is uncertainty that causes great concern to the residents.

The Armenian National Committee of America on Thursday called on the Trump/Vance Administration to condemn and hold Israel accountable for drone striking a residential apartment building in Beirut’s Armenian Bourdj Hammoud district – “a neighborhood populated by descendants of Armenian Genocide survivors.”

The attacks unleashed by Israel against Lebanon are gradually revealing Israel’s true goals in the region and against Lebanon, starting from the southern suburbs of Beirut to the border towns of southern Lebanon and the Bekaa and Baalbek areas.

Lebanon had initiated direct negotiations with Israel, in an attempt to prevent new attacks against Lebanon. Reports indicate that Lebanon has formed its own committee called to participate in the negotiations planned in Cyprus.

For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron has been in close contact with Lebanese and Israeli officials, urging them to stop the military operations.

However, it seems that Israel only wants to impose its point of view. Israeli forces have already penetrated the southern borders and are positioned in 18 centers, expanding the scope of their aggression.

Israeli sources have revealed that Israel is planning to launch a large-scale offensive within a week and penetrate deep into southern Lebanon.

On Thursday evening, the Israeli Air Force directly targeted Hezbollah facilities in the southern suburbs of Beirut with drones, causing material damage. It is worth noting that Israel is gradually penetrating the borders of the capital Beirut, where one of the latest targets was the building called “Ahmad Abbas” in the Bashura neighborhood near the Sodeco district of Beirut, where, according to the Israeli “justification,” Hezbollah has stored millions of dollars. Later, Israel also struck the branch of Hezbollah’s “Kart Hassan” credit institution in Zoqak Plat.

Before that, on the night between Wednesday and Thursday, Israel had also struck a building in Ramlet Bayda, near Raouche, on the Beirut coast, where, according to Israel, an Iranian Revolutionary Guard official was sheltering.

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Pashinyan says frozen EU–Georgia dialogue biggest challenge for Armenia’s EU

Maghakian Mike

Politics17:19, 11 March 2026
Read the article in: SpanishفارسیՀայերենRussian

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that the biggest current challenge on Armenia’s path toward EU integration is the frozen political dialogue between the European Union and Georgia. He made the remarks during a speech at the European Parliament.

“Georgia is our gateway to the European Union. We adopted the law on launching the process of Armenia’s accession to the EU after Georgia received candidate status for EU membership. This made the prospect of Armenia joining the EU tangible, and our expectation and request is that the EU–Georgia constructive process continues. This is important for Armenia, just as it is for Georgia,” Pashinyan said.

The Prime Minister noted that since the adoption of the law on launching the process of Armenia’s accession to the EU, many in Armenia have asked when the country will become an EU member.

“Our answer is very clear: no country can join the EU without meeting the Union’s standards. Therefore, our task, with the support of our European partners, is to continue along the path of reforms and first objectively meet the criteria for EU accession.

“When this happens, there are two possibilities: either the EU will accept us, or it will not. I say this because I understand that EU enlargement and the admission of a new member is not a simple matter; it is also a political decision.

“Therefore, if the EU accepts Armenia as a full member, that will be excellent. If it does not, we will still benefit, because we will be a country that meets EU standards,” Pashinyan emphasized.

Published by Armenpress, original at 
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Armenia Hires U.S. Law Firm in Amulsar Arbitration Case; Government Refuses to Reveal Contract Price

Maghakian Mike
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 24 2024

The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) panel has begun hearing a U.S. investor’s treaty claim against Armenia over the controversial Amulsar gold mining project that has been blocked for years by environmental protesters.

Armenia has hired the services of the prestigious U.S. law firm Foley Hoag, but Pashinyan’s administration refuses to reveal what it’s paying to the firm, arguing “case confidentiality.”

The contract doesn’t appear on ARMEPS, the Armenian government’s online procurement’s ystem.

Hasmik Samvelyan, Press Secretary of Armenia’s Office of the Representative for International Legal Affairs, told Hetq that the Foley Hoag contract has not been published in the Armeps system since the case is being conducted under conditions of confidentiality. When asked to reveal the contract price, she argued this too is confidential.

The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PAC) is providing administrative support in the case “Amulsar Investor Ventures LLC v Republic of Armenia”.

In March 2019, Lydian International, the company that fully owned the mine then, informed the Armenian government that it was launching an arbitration claim for losses incurred due to the “illegal closure” of roads leading to the mine by environmentalists. (The mine site that straddles the Vayots Dzor-Syunik provincial border in southern Armenia.)

The mine has stood idle for years because of conflicting environmental impact studies and public protests. The Pashinyan administration, which came to power in 2018, originally opposed mining at Amulsar A year later, in an about-face, announced that the mine would not harm the environment and ordered police to remove the demonstrators.

Armenian Minister of Economy Vahan Kerobyan, last February, announced that the government has signed a $250 million deal with Lydian Armenia CJSC to restart operations at the controversial Amulsar gold mine.

The deal, a memorandum of understanding signed between the Armenian government Armenia, the Eurasian Development Bank and Lydia Armenia, will pump US$250 million into the Amulsar project to complete construction work and purchase mining equipment. The Armenian government will get a 12.5% stake in Lydian Armenia in return for allowing the mine to reopen.

In 2021, Lydian International was dissolved since its subsidiary, Lydian Armenia, wasn’t meeting its contractual obligations to its senior lenders, funding partners and equipment suppliers. The mine was idle, no money was coming in.

Lydian Canada Ventures, which took over Lydian Armenia, is owned by the U.S. firm Orion Mine Finance, and the Canadian company Osisko Gold Royalties.  

Much isn’t known about Amulsar Investor Ventures LLC, the plaintiff in the arbitration case. The company was registered in 2022 in the state of Delaware (U.S.) USA. The demands of the claimant in this case from the Republic of Armenia have not yet been published.

In addition to Foley Hoag, Armenia’s Office on International Legal Matters is also representing the government in Yerevan.

Foley Hoag has represented Armenia in the past in arbitration cases. In 2021, Armenia paid the legal firm US$1.5 million in an arbitration case against the Lebanese company Sanitek over a contractual dispute. The Yerevan Municipality had awarded Sanitek the contract for garbage disposal in the Armenian capital. Sanitek accused the municipality of non-payment and the municipality accused the company of doing a poor job and not fulfilling its obligations.

Europeans for Artsakh movement calls for banning Azerbaijan from 2024 Olympics

Maghakian Mike

 15:03,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. The Europeans for Artsakh movement has urged the International Olympic Committee to take a stand against Azerbaijan's participation in the 2024 Olympic Games.

The movement has sent a letter to the President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) concerning Azerbaijan's participation in the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris and has called on the IOC to undertake concrete measures. The letter was also sent to the French National Olympic Committee, the French Olympic Games Organising Committee, the City of Paris, the President of the French Republic and the Minister for Sport and the Olympic and Paralympic Games, Europeans for Artsakh said in a press release.

Referring to the ongoing conflict and the ethnic cleansing committed by Azerbaijan against the indigenous Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh, the Europeans for Artsakh movement urged the IOC to ban Azerbaijan from being represented as a state at the forthcoming Olympic Games and to allow Azerbaijani athletes to compete only under a neutral banner. “This call comes in the wake of Azerbaijan's genocidal policy and ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh/Artsakh, which led to the forced displacement of 120,000 Armenians from their ancestral lands and homeland in September 2023,” the movement said.

Only the French National Olympic Committee replied to the letter, according to the press release, acknowledging the situation and indicating that its position was in line with that of the French government and its diplomatic efforts, while stating: "we cannot remain insensitive to such a catastrophe."

“Europeans for Artsakh expects a clear position from the International Olympic Committee, since a failure to respond would undermine the integrity of the Olympic Games and pave the way for warmongering states.The movement will continue to put pressure for the sake of integrity and justice in this regard.”

Europeans for Artsakh is a pan-European movement bringing together the representative bodies of the 15 Armenian communities in Europe. It was the initiator of an appeal addressed to the leaders of the European Council, the European Commission and the European Parliament, as well as to the leaders of the Member States of the Council of Europe, in support of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh. This appeal was co-signed by more than 500 European associations.

The mission of this movement is to mobilise citizens and take the necessary action to ensure that the fundamental rights of the indigenous Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) are exercised and guaranteed.

Baku, Yerevan Pledge To Resolve Differences Without Force: Scholz

Maghakian Mike
UrduPoint
Feb 17 2024

 Muhammad Irfan

Armenia and Azerbaijan's presidents pledged Saturday to resolve differences through peaceful means, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said after holding three-way talks between the leaders

Munich, (APP – UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News – 17th Feb, 2024) Armenia and Azerbaijan's presidents pledged Saturday to resolve differences through peaceful means, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said after holding three-way talks between the leaders.

At the meeting in Munich with Armenia's President Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijan counterpart Ilham Aliyev, Scholz urged a rapid conclusion of peace talks, according to a statement issued by the chancellery.

"The chancellor praised pledges from both sides today, to resolve differences in opinion and open questions exclusively through peaceful means and without the use of force," added the statement.

No official statements have been issued from either side regarding the talks.

But the promises to avoid conflict would be a marked change in tone from Pashinyan's warning on Thursday that Azerbaijan was planning a "full-scale war".

On Tuesday, both sides also accused each other of opening fire on their volatile border, in a skirmish Armenia said left four of its soldiers dead.

Tensions between the two Caucasus neighbours have remained high since Baku re-captured the Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh last September in a lightning military offensive.

Yerevan is concerned that Azerbaijan, emboldened by its success in Karabakh, could invade Armenian territory in order to create a land bridge to its exclave of Nakhchivan.

Aliyev, who won re-election this month, said in an inauguration speech Wednesday it was Armenia, not Azerbaijan, that had outstanding territorial claims.

Pashinyan and Aliyev previously said a peace agreement could have been signed by the end of last year, but internationally mediated peace talks have failed to yield a breakthrough.

In a bilateral meeting also in Munich, Pashinyan told US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday morning that that had been a "new escalation" with Azerbaijan, in reference to the latest skirmish.

Aliyev is due to hold separate talks with Blinken later Saturday on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference.

Blinken Meets with Armenian PM Pashinyan

Maghakian Mike
Mirage
Feb 17 2024

As stated by Spokesperson Matthew Miller:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to discuss strengthening bilateral ties and U.S. support for efforts to reach a durable and dignified peace agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Secretary Blinken noted our ongoing efforts to support Armenia's vision for a prosperous and democratic future for its people, as well as U.S. support for Armenia's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity.

Armenia’s Power Grid Expansion: A Story of Ambition and Investment

Maghakian Mike
Feb 15 2024

In the heart of Armenia, a revolution is underway, and it's not political or cultural. It's electrical. Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) CJSC, the powerhouse behind the nation's medium and low voltage distribution networks, is in the throes of a massive expansion, attracting significant investments to broaden the power grid and connect an unprecedented number of new subscribers.

The numbers are staggering. In 2023 alone, ENA connected 35,000 new subscribers to the power grid. That's equivalent to adding a new town the size of Artashat, Armenia's fifth largest city. If the current growth rate continues, Yerevan, the country's capital, will see 68,000 new subscribers by 2030. That's equal to the combined number of subscribers in Gyumri and Vanadzor, Armenia's third and fourth largest towns.

This expansion isn't happening in a vacuum. Since 2016, ENA has invested AMD 235 billion in modernizing its equipment and infrastructure. The result? A reduction in technical and commercial losses, improved service quality, and international investors lining up to offer loans at below-market rates.

The trust in ENA is well-placed. The company has ambitious plans to invest a total of AMD 461 billion by 2030 to further develop the network economy, reduce losses, and enhance service quality. This investment will not only strengthen Armenia's power grid but also pave the way for a more robust and sustainable economy.

As of today, , there are 118,000 applications for new connections under review. This is a testament to the growing demand for reliable power in Armenia. With ENA at the helm, the future of Armenia's power grid looks brighter than ever.

In Yerevan alone, 19,939 new subscribers were connected in 2023. This trend is set to continue, with the capital city poised to become a beacon of power and progress in the region.

The expansion of Armenia's power grid is more than just an infrastructure project. It's a story of ambition, resilience, and the transformative power of investment. As the lines between technology and humanity continue to blur, ENA is leading the charge, illuminating a path towards a brighter, more connected future.

Patriarch of Romania welcomed new Armenian Ambassador to Romania

Maghakian Mike
Feb 15 2024

Patriarch Daniel of Romania welcomed Tigran Galstyan, the Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to Romania, on a presentation visit on Wednesday.

Patriarch Daniel congratulated the newly-appointed Ambassador of the Republic of Armenia in Bucharest and wished him a successful diplomatic mission in Romania.

The Ambassador expressed gratitude to the Patriarch of Romania for the privilege of receiving him and emphasized the outstanding relations between the two nations.

According to a press release issued by the Department for inter-church and inter-religious relations of the Romanian Patriarchate, Patriarch Daniel conveyed optimism that these relations would be strengthened throughout his term, particularly by fostering spiritual and cultural connections.

The ambassador stated that his initial official encounter was with the Patriarch of Romania after presenting his credentials, as he desired the diplomatic endeavors to commence under God’s blessing.

In addition, Tigran Galstyan reminisced about the Armenian community’s centuries-long presence in Romania and the significance of Patriarch Vasken I, Catholicos of All Armenians, who was a symbol of the Armenian people’s resurgence of national consciousness and was born and educated in Romania.

During the meeting, Patriarch Daniel emphasized the Christian faith’s significance and role in safeguarding the Armenian people’s identity amidst challenging historical periods. Furthermore, he stated that the two peoples have shared historical experiences.

Preserving and advancing spiritual heritage is thus imperative within a geopolitical and religious context beset by difficulties.

After the meeting, the Patriarch of Romania specified that the organization of pilgrimages in Armenia and Romania and the development of collaborative initiatives constitute a practical means of fostering mutual understanding between the two peoples.

Armenian Foreign Minister meets with Chair of European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Security and Defense

Maghakian Mike

 09:56,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 13, ARMENPRESS. Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan has met with MEP Nathalie Loiseau, the Chair of the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Security and Defense.

“Armenia-EU Partnership agenda issues were discussed, where the EU legislative body has its unique role in advancing them. In this context, the prospects of deepening partnership and mutual efforts were discussed,” the foreign ministry said in a readout.

The sides comprehensively discussed regional issues in the South Caucasus. Armenia’s vision of overcoming the existing challenges, including with international support, was presented to MEP Loiseau. The importance of suppressing territorial aspirations against Armenia and the unconditional adherence to the territorial integrity and inviolability of borders was emphasized. The principled approach and documents adopted by the European Parliament, containing unambiguous assessments and messages, in difficult times for the people of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, were touched upon.

FM Mirzoyan thanked MEP Nathalie Loiseau for her significant contribution in advancing issues of key importance for Armenia and protection of humanitarian values and awarded her with the Medal of Gratitude of the Republic of Armenia.

Armenia-EU ties obviously deepening – PM

Maghakian Mike

 00:37,

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 12, ARMENPRESS. The relations between Armenia and the European Union are deepening, including under the conditions and because of the implementation of the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said in an interview with The Telegraph’s Roland Oliphant.

“We should clarify what we mean by saying direction, because even before I became the prime minister, Armenia and the European Union had already signed the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement. Now that agreement is being implemented,” he said when asked if he wants to lead Armenia in the direction of the EU.

“It is obvious that the relations between Armenia and the European Union are deepening, including under the conditions and because of the implementation of the "Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement". But, of course, on the other hand, it is obvious that the relations between Armenia and the European Union are getting closer because, according to the international community, we have visible successes in implementing democratic reforms.

"You know, this subtlety is very important for understanding our situation, the situation and many events that are unfolding in Armenia. Look, we don't turn away from anyone. We are implementing the messages received from our people. And that message is primarily about democratic reforms. And democracy, democratic reforms, the development of a democratic society are not agendas caused by certain circumstances. I have stated many times that this is a strategy for us, and in my speech in the European Parliament I stated that we will continue the implementation of these strategies, we will continue these reforms. And I said that the Republic of Armenia is ready to be as close to the European Union as the European Union deems it possible,” Pashinyan added.