Category: News

Caucasian Knot

Oct 29, 2026

The Second Eastern District Military Court sentenced Armenian native Gevorg Grigoryan to nine and a half years in a penal colony, whose comments on social media were deemed by the prosecution as calls for terrorism and extremism.

Grigoryan, who lived in the Trans-Baikal Territory and held citizenship of Russia and Armenia, was tried on charges of spreading fakes about the Russian army, rehabilitating Nazism, as well as calls for terrorism and extremism.

Grigoryan was detained and placed under house arrest in June 2025, with the criminal case initiated due to anti-Russian comments on Armenian resources. In them, he wrote that “Hitler should have destroyed them all” or that “after Ukraine, Russian troops will enter Armenia,” reports Mediazona*.

According to an acquaintance, Grigoryan wrote these comments because he was “upset that Moscow did not help his homeland in the war for Karabakh.” Later, Grigoryan agreed with the charges and “repented of his words,” the publication notes.

The Investigative Committee for the Trans-Baikal Territory stated on August 20, 2025, in a release about the detention of a local resident that he was accused of rehabilitating Nazism, inciting hatred, committed using the internet with justification or propaganda of violence.

“According to the investigation, since September 2023, the accused systematically posted public comments in one of the messengers containing offensive formulations that humiliate the dignity of a group of persons based on nationality, openly supported the ideology of Nazism, used Nazi slogans, and also spread messages whose content was aimed at inciting hatred and enmity on national grounds,” the agency’s message states.

Initially, Grigoryan was charged only with rehabilitating Nazism and inciting hatred, and he was to be tried in the Central District Court of Chita, but over time new articles appeared in the case, and in August 2026, the case was transferred to the district military court.

As a result, the Second Eastern District Military Court sentenced Grigoryan to nine and a half years of imprisonment. According to the criminal case card on the court’s website, his case on criminal articles was submitted to the court on August 5, and the verdict was read out on October 20 by Judge Zyryanov.

In December 2025, Gevorg Grigoryan’s data was entered into the register of terrorists and extremists of Rosfinmonitoring. The young man was born in Yerevan in 2003, and he turned 23 in June.

We have updated the applications on Android and IOS! We would appreciate feedback, ideas for development both in Google Play/App Store and on the pages of the Caucasian Knot in social networks. Without installing a VPN, you can read us on Telegram (in Dagestan, Chechnya, and Ingushetia – with a VPN). Through a VPN, you can continue to read “Caucasian Knot” on the website as usual, and on social networks Facebook**, Instagram**, “VKontakte”, “Odnoklassniki” and X. You can watch videos of the “Caucasian Knot” on YouTube.

* included in the Russian register of foreign agents.

** the activities of the Meta company (which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.

Translated automatically via OpenAI from class=”gmail_default”>

Источник: Кавказский Узел

Caucasian Knot

Oct 31, 2026

The editor of the encyclopedia “Armenians of the Black Sea Region” publicly apologized to the residents of Abkhazia.

Editor Christopher Mkhtaryan recorded a video message in which he publicly apologized for the information in the first volume of the encyclopedia “Armenians of the Black Sea Region,” which caused outrage among the residents of Abkhazia.

As reported by “Caucasian Knot”, the Armenian community in Abkhazia has previously faced threats and insults. On February 20, 2025, the Investigative Committee of Russia opened a case for inciting hatred and hostility with threats of violence against Armenians, Russians, and Abkhazians living in Abkhazia who hold Russian citizenship. According to the investigation, calls for the persecution of these citizens, including violence against Armenians, were spread on the internet.

On February 17, 2025, a resident of Gagra, Enver Bganba apologized to the Armenian community after an audio recording with threats was circulated regarding the results of the first round of the presidential elections. Bganba claimed that the audio recordings were edited, and in a published video of a meeting with a community representative, he explained that he spoke out of emotion and did not intend to offend the Armenian people.

The editor of the first volume of the encyclopedia “Armenians of the Black Sea Region” Christopher Mkhtaryan recorded a video message apologizing to the residents of Abkhazia. He acknowledged his responsibility for the appearance of information in the publication that he called pseudoscientific and that hurt the national feelings of Abkhazians.

“As the editor, I share my share of responsibility, having shown incompetence and allowing the article to go to print. In this regard, I apologize to the public of Abkhazia and assure that I had no intention to tarnish or offend the national feelings of Abkhazians,” Mkhtaryan stated in the video message, which was published on October 30 by the Telegram channel “News | Emergency Abkhazia.”

The first volume of the encyclopedia was published in 2020. Its author and compiler of the controversial article is candidate of historical sciences Igor Kuznetsov, Mkhtaryan clarified. In the same volume, there is a large article “Abkhazia,” in which, according to Mkhtaryan, the information is presented correctly.

According to the editor, immediately after the release of the first volume, the print run was returned to the printing house, and the article “Abaza” was corrected. The encyclopedia was not intended for sale, and the copies that appeared on marketplaces have no relation to the creators of the publication, he stated.

“The electronic version of the encyclopedia has also been removed from the internet. Only a few copies distributed during the presentation remain, and currently, all remaining volumes have been seized and will be sent for disposal,” Mkhtaryan added.

He expressed regret about what happened.

Abkhaz veterans demanded to hold the authors of the encyclopedia accountable

The article “Abaza” caused outrage among the residents of Abkhazia, as it provided an indecent interpretation of the name of Abkhazians and Abazins, JAMnews explained on October 30. The veterans’ organization “Aruaa” regarded the publication as a provocation and demanded measures against the authors and those involved in the publication of the book, including declaring them persona non grata and initiating criminal cases.

At a meeting of the Council for Veterans Affairs under the President of Abkhazia, representatives of the Armenian community also condemned the publication. Meeting participants considered the statements in the book offensive to the Abkhaz people and distorting historical facts. Following the meeting, the vice president instructed relevant agencies to take measures to prevent the distribution of the publication, reported the newspaper “Republic of Abkhazia” on October 23, citing the press service of the president of the republic.

On October 28, the Prosecutor General’s Office of Abkhazia reported on its website about the inspection of the materials of the encyclopedia. The agency indicated that it is checking the actions of the authors and publishers for signs of crimes under the criminal legislation of the republic.

The article was conceived as part of a series of publications on ethnic stereotypes and national nicknames, explained its author Igor Kuznetsov. “I believed that knowledge is the best weapon against national prejudices,” he wrote in an open letter published on October 22 on the website Russia-Armenia.info.

Kuznetsov acknowledged the publication of the article as erroneous. According to him, in 2023, after criticism, it was decided to withdraw the original version of the article, and the print run was revised, replacing the controversial text. As the author claimed, about ten copies distributed at the presentation remained uncorrected. After the release of the second volume, the project was closed, he added.

The practice of public apologies initiated by Ramzan Kadyrov has spread beyond Chechnya and extended to other regions of Russia. More about this practice can be read in the “Caucasian Knot” reference “The Fashion for Apologies: From Chechnya to the Outskirts”. “Caucasian Knot” also maintains “A Chronicle of Public Apologies in the Caucasus”.

Translated automatically via OpenAI from class=”gmail_default”>

Источник: Кавказский Узел

Caucasian Knot

Oct 30, 2026

Karabakh activists accused the Armenian authorities of downplaying issues at COP17

During the UN biodiversity conference in Yerevan, Armenian authorities downplayed the issue of the destruction of Armenian cultural heritage in Karabakh and the problem of environmental threats in Syunik, activists stated on the last day of the event.

As reported by “Caucasian Knot”, on October 18, Karabakh politicians and activists expressed outrage that UN Secretary-General António Guterres, who came to COP17, did not speak out about the rights of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The biodiversity conference COP17 opened in Yerevan on October 19 and concluded today, October 30. Events took place at two venues: in the Blue Zone (Expo Center “Meridian”) there were official discussions, negotiations, sessions, and press conferences, while in the Green Zone (Karen Demirchyan Sports and Concert Complex) exhibition and thematic pavilions of participating countries operated. Organizations of Karabakh Armenians did not receive pavilions at the conference.

The event “Discover Artsakh (the self-designation of Nagorno-Karabakh). Let’s get acquainted!” took place on October 28 at the monument to Karen Demirchyan near the entrance to the “green zone” of COP17. The program included traditional songs and dances, tasting of national cuisine dishes, including jengyalov hats, and a photo exhibition about Nagorno-Karabakh and its cultural heritage. Anyone interested could attend, reports the correspondent of “Caucasian Knot”.

Member of the Public Council of Nagorno-Karabakh Alvard Zakaryan explained that the organizers had to choose this venue after being denied an exhibition pavilion. According to her, one of the main goals of the event is to remind participants and organizers of the conference about the existence of the Karabakh people and their culture.

“We managed to attract the attention of some COP17 participants to the living culture of Artsakh Armenians, their traditions, and the inseparable connection with their historical homeland,” she said.

Karabakh organizations and activists held actions starting from October 15: four days before the opening of the COP17 conference, an action of the initiative “No protection of nature without human rights” took place in front of the Armenian government building. Participants demanded to stop the Amulsar mine and spoke about the right of Karabakh people to return. Five days later, activists sent letters to the diplomatic missions of several countries and the EU representation. The letters called for raising the issue of protecting the rights of Karabakh people at the conference.

Public figure Meri Davtyan, former head of the scientific and cultural center of the Matenadaran “Gandzasar” in Nagorno-Karabakh, noted that activists held actions, sent appeals to embassies, and participated in panel discussions. “Even after COP17, representatives of Artsakh will continue to fight for their rights,” she emphasized.

Zakaryan lamented the “formal responses” to appeals. She believes that the Armenian society and diaspora need to more actively use international platforms and mechanisms “to achieve results.”

Claims against the authorities

The official position of the Armenian authorities is aimed at excluding the Karabakh issue from the public agenda, Davtyan is convinced. In her opinion, obstacles to the participation of Karabakh people contradict the stated goals of the conference.

Chairman of the “Union of Artsakh” organization Artak Beglaryan reported that the organization did not receive specific explanations for the refusal. He associates it with the political position of the authorities. According to Beglaryan, issues of the rights of Karabakh people, protection of heritage, and preservation of landscapes corresponded to the theme of the conference, which included the rights of indigenous peoples. The Armenian Ministry of Environment, however, stated that the organizations’ program did not align with the ecological focus of the event.

Beglaryan also mentioned that at the initiative of the “Union of Artsakh”, more than 600 applications for the restoration of property rights have been submitted to the European Court of Human Rights on behalf of 1300 Karabakh people. Another 400 applications will be prepared and submitted by the end of the year. “According to the European Convention, people have the right to return home and live in their own house,” he noted. Other forms of struggle, he said, need to be discussed with the Karabakh public.

The Armenian authorities did not raise issues of the return of Karabakh people, the release of Armenian prisoners in Baku, the destruction of cultural heritage, and environmental threats in Syunik at the conference, noted public figure Nare Simonian. “The national agenda of Armenia remained outside COP17,” she added.

Human rights defender Nina Karapetyan believes that the international community is well aware of the violations of the rights of Karabakh people, but its decisions are determined by political interests. As an example, she cited the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh from December 2022 to September 2023: according to her, the demands of international courts to ensure movement through the Lachin corridor did not yield the expected results. Karapetyan is convinced that these issues need to be consistently raised in the legal field, even if the Armenian authorities do not help.

The ombudsman for the preservation of cultural heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh Ovik Avanesov stated that representatives of Nagorno-Karabakh were not given the opportunity to present facts of the destruction of Armenian monuments at the conference. They are documented by satellite images, photographs, videos, and reports from international research organizations, he clarified. According to him, the ombudsman’s office sent more than 30 materials about the state of heritage in Nagorno-Karabakh and Nakhichevan to UNESCO and the UN and will continue to collect facts.

Public figure Artak Mkrtchyan believes that protecting Armenian culture in Nagorno-Karabakh will be extremely difficult without a consistent state policy. He called for demanding specific steps from the Armenian authorities to protect churches and monuments.

“Much depends on the position of the Armenian authorities, as the representation of Artsakh at international venues is largely linked to political decisions. The policy of the current Armenian authorities creates obstacles for the representation of Artsakh at international venues, preservation of its cultural heritage, and protection of the rights of Artsakh people. Coordinated actions of the entire Armenian community are necessary to protect Armenian culture and rights at the international level,” he told the correspondent of “Caucasian Knot”.

Translated automatically via OpenAI from class=”gmail_default”>
Источник: Кавказский Узел