Caucasian Knot

22 July 2026

The Yerevan court of first instance has accepted the lawsuit of Karabakh activist Artur Osipyan demanding an apology from Nikol Pashinyan. The criminal prosecution of Osipyan continues, and the case is already in court.

As reported by “Caucasian Knot”, Karabakh activist Artur Osipyan was detained on May 18 in Yerevan after a dispute with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who was conducting an election campaign. The court sent Osipyan to pre-trial detention for two months. In the isolation facility, the activist declared a hunger strike demanding public apologies from Nikol Pashinyan for insults and slander against him and all refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh. On June 10, Osipyan was released on a travel ban, and he ended his hunger strike at home. On June 18, Osipyan filed a lawsuit in court.

The general jurisdiction court in Yerevan has accepted the lawsuit of Artur Osipyan against Nikol Pashinyan. The oppositionist himself announced this on July 21 on his Facebook page*, reminding that he demands a refutation of slanderous statements and public apologies from Pashinyan.

The activist published an official document on his page – the court’s decision to accept his lawsuit against the defendant Nikol Pashinyan. Osipyan also noted that he considers his criminal prosecution to be a “manifestation of selective justice,” as the Investigative Committee did not initiate a case against the Prime Minister based on his statement.

“The fact that the prosecutor’s office and the Investigative Committee see a crime in one case under the same circumstances, but not in another, is already a serious problem in itself. In the more coarse statements of Nikol Pashinyan, they do not see a violation of the law, while in my case, where there is no violation of the law, the prosecutor’s office makes a completely different decision,” – quoted Osipyan’s words by the publication Aravot.am.

The activist noted that all circumstances of his conflict with the Prime Minister are recorded on video, his own publications are publicly available, and a number of human rights organizations confirm the absence of legal violations on his part.

Artur Osipyan is prohibited from leaving Armenia under the terms of the preventive measure: he remains under a travel ban, but the previously applied measure of bail was lifted following the first court session, said the activist’s lawyer David Ovanisyan.

“The investigative body promptly sent the criminal case to court, and it is currently at the stage of judicial proceedings. The first court session has already taken place, and the second is expected in September,” – he told the correspondent of the “Caucasian Knot”.

Artur Osipyan is charged under three articles, including public calls for violence and hooliganism. The defender reminded that the oppositionist was deprived of freedom for 24 days and spent all this time on a hunger strike.

“The judicial process is still ongoing, and we cannot definitively say what results to expect. We hope to achieve justice, but in such politically charged cases, it would be wrong to talk about any expectations. Similar cases are usually sent to court only after several months, but in this case, the case was submitted to court within one month. Given this, I believe it is not worth expecting any miracles,” – noted lawyer Ovanisyan.

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Source: Caucasian Knot

Caucasian Knot

18 July 2026

As reported by “Caucasian Knot”, Rosselkhoznadzor introduced temporary restrictions on the import of flowers from Armenia starting May 22, 2026, and on fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, greens, and strawberries from May 30. Additionally, the import of all batches of Armenian mineral water “Jermuk” and several brandies and wines, as well as fish, was halted. From June 2, Rosselkhoznadzor extended the ban to fresh grapes and stone fruits, including cherries and sweet cherries, and from June 3 – to potatoes, eggplants, as well as pome fruits and dried fruits. Under the guise of Iranian products, cut flowers from Armenia were imported into Russia, Rosselkhoznadzor stated on July 17, asking the Iranian Plant Protection Organization to suspend the certification of flowers for export to Russia.

Flowers from Armenia can be sold in the markets of the EU, Central Asian countries, Arab states, and neighboring countries, said Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. On the domestic market, flowers are hard to sell even at the lowest prices, and there is no information about supplies to Europe, farmers countered.

Armenian flowers have entered the market of the United Arab Emirates, particularly in Dubai, the Minister of Economy of Armenia Gevorg Papoyan reported today on his Facebook page.*

“Special thanks to the economic advisor of the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in the UAE, Aik Mkhtaryan, for making this project possible,” he wrote.

The volumes of flower supplies to the UAE were not specified in the report.

The Armenian government will pay exporters of agricultural products about $8.6 million as compensation, reports Hayk Media. According to the Ministry of Economy, over 780 tons of peppers, 200 tons of tomatoes, 109 tons of strawberries, 3,000 tons of apricots, 1,400 tons of cherries, 1.5 million liters of mineral water, and 230,000 liters of wine were exported from the country in June. Armenia also exported fruits to 15 countries, flowers to 25, and vegetables to 8 countries, the publication states.

The World Bank warned of risks to the Armenian economy due to Russian import restrictions.

The Armenian economy continues to show results above expectations; however, recent events in relations with Russia raise concerns and force the government to support exporters, according to the July review of the World Bank Armenia Monthly Economic Update, quoted by the Arka agency.

“If the restrictions persist and expand without mitigation measures being taken, the negative impact may extend beyond trade and affect economic growth, prices, and social conditions,” the review states.

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Source: Caucasian Knot

Caucasian Knot

22 July 2026

Armenian fish farmers held a protest in Yerevan.

Fish farmers and employees of fish farming enterprises held a protest near the government building in Yerevan, demanding a solution to the problem of selling their products.

As reported by “Caucasian Knot”, Russia has restricted the import of a number of goods from Armenia. In particular, on June 27, Rosselkhoznadzor suspended the import of fish products.

In Yerevan, several dozen fish farmers took to the streets in protest due to problems with exporting their products. They gathered near the government building of Armenia, Yerevan.today reported on July 21.

The fish farmers demanded government support. “We expect the government to implement support programs. Two programs have already been implemented, but they are unrealistic and will not bring any positive results to the industry,” said the head of the Fish Farming Union of Armenia, Gor Grigoryan, whose words were quoted by Panorama.am on July 21.

Entrepreneurs had previously met with the Minister of Economy and discussed the situation with him. This time, they demanded a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan. The authorities are making formal decisions, trying to create the impression that the problem is being solved, Grigoryan noted.

“Neither the export regulations to the European market nor the issue of subsidies for export have been resolved. We have said and continue to say – the European market is still out of reach for us. It is unrealistic to sell the existing volumes in the European market,” he said.

We are talking about approximately 15 tons of live fish, as well as frozen products that were returned from the Russian border.

Armenian fish farmers have been establishing supplies to the Russian market for 30 years. In the first year, their volume was 60 tons, and over these 30 years, export volumes reached 13,000 tons, the head of the Fish Farming Union pointed out. “With a couple of government decisions, do they want to redirect a huge market of 13,000 tons to Europe in two months? This is impossible,” he emphasized.

The Minister of Economy had previously promised fish farmers support until the export problems were resolved. Two weeks have passed since then, but no actions have been taken, Grigoryan noted.

“Caucasian Knot” also reported that on July 20, a group of farmers blocked the Yerevan – Eraskh highway due to problems with selling their products. Participants in the protest also complained that the Minister of Economy promised to assist them, but the problem remains unresolved.

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Source: Caucasian Knot

The Central Election Commission of Armenia allowed criminal prosecution of Narek Karapetyan.

The Central Election Commission of Armenia agreed to involve parliament member from “Strong Armenia” Narek Karapetyan as a defendant, but rejected the Prosecutor General’s request for his arrest.

As reported by “Caucasian Knot”, the Central Election Commission of Armenia returned to the prosecutor’s office the request for initiating criminal prosecution against Narek Karapetyan, who heads the electoral list of the “Strong Armenia” bloc, as well as for four other candidates from the bloc. The decision was made because the powers of the candidates for deputies expired on July 4. The “Strong Armenia” bloc will take the mandates and work in parliament, as in the absence of a constitutional majority for the ruling party, this will allow blocking a number of decisions, said Narek Karapetyan.

The “Strong Armenia” bloc, along with other parties, after the Constitutional Court’s decision, which upheld the CEC’s decision on the election results, issued a statement about the illegitimacy of the authorities and plans to seek their removal.

The Central Election Commission of Armenia rejected the prosecutor’s request for consent to deprive the representative of the “Strong Armenia” bloc, who received a deputy mandate, Narek Karapetyan, of his freedom, reported “Armenpress” citing the advisor to the Attorney General of Armenia, Lusine Martirosyan.

22:52 21.07.2026The CEC of Armenia handed mandates to the elected members of parliamentThe first session of the Armenian parliament of the ninth convocation, formed as a result of the June elections, is scheduled for August 2.
Today, the CEC agreed to involve Narek Karapetyan, who received a mandate as a member of the Armenian parliament the day before, as a defendant, reported lawyer Aram Vardevanyan.

“The CEC approved the decision to consent to involve Narek Karapetyan as a defendant. This does not mean a complete deprivation of immunity — it is solely about bringing charges,” Yerevan.Today quoted him as saying.

The second request, for consent to impose a preventive measure in the form of arrest on Narek Karapetyan, was returned to the Prosecutor General’s Office by the CEC, Vardevanyan reported.

“I want to note that we believe the previous decision should have been returned as well, since there was no legal mechanism for it. Nevertheless, the most likely scenario is that the process of bringing shameful, illegal, and absurd charges against Narek Karapetyan will begin soon with the selection of a milder preventive measure,” the agency quoted the lawyer as saying.

The prosecutor’s office refused to disclose what charges are related to the requests. A representative of the “Strong Armenia” bloc, Aram Vardevanyan, did not rule out that it concerns a document previously returned by the CEC or an investigation regarding foreign citizenship, reported Armenia Today on July 21.

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Source: Caucasian Knot

OC Media

July 22 2026

GRISH DAVTYAN

THE LISBON FIVE

Sargis

Sedrakin

Arai

Simon

They were afraid

They threw themselves into self-sacrifice,

death avoided

They became immortal…

This is a pentagon of hearts

And it’s spread out

A geographer in a disputed territory,

That the sacred motherland was holy,

Sprinkled with the holy blood of children,

Abandoned, abandoned, abandoned.

Now it’s affecting an entire nation

Untouched by Genocide

With the tenderness of corpses, corpses…

 

A spirit of five tevans is a measure of heart,

Cufflinks,

That broke through

The silence of the conspiracy is ungrateful,

The heart of heaven is broken

A tear to squeeze

In return for that father and the flood of blood,

That poured out and baptized the land native

With the blood of fathers and mothers,

With the blood of sons and daughters,

And with the warm blood of a whole generation,

That he did not greet the sun with his birth.

 

The five-pointed star of Lisbon,

What is the explosion?

Five times the same heart

And hearts

of our hearts

Hearts of a whole nation

One heart became five hearts…

 

And the thunder

The sheer volume of the response was heartbreaking

It will explode

That thundered in our hearts,

It still resonates

In the holy piles of unburied martyrs

Abandoned children, abandoned country, abandoned people

Depopulated in the homeland,

Which tomb is now

Lok tomb, the cradle of the past

Denied of the motherland, motherland…

 

Five willing and self-sacrificing spirits,

In the self-igniting flames

Five hearts were sacrificed,

What was one heart, five hearts,

They were stigmatized by the great conspiracy of silence

To all heartless people,

They made a confession

With global interest.

 

Five fists one ram,

What a bomb has lit in our hearts

The proclamation of the holy demand national,

To bury the martyrs of our saint

Denied in the holy homeland.

***