During the women’s month, I visited and congratulated our hardworking women, highly appreciating their great contribution, dedication and years of responsible work. Gagik Tsarukyan wrote about this on his Facebook page.

“I can say with confidence that the Armenian woman is unique. He is a great force that creates, maintains and strengthens a family, a reliable friend of life and an irreplaceable support.

May God protect you all, and may you always be by our side, strong, dignified and happy,” he wrote.

Details in the video

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Arman Tatoyan, head of the “Wings of Unity” political initiative, presented the main provisions of his program, announcing his intention to run for the position of the country’s prime minister. In his speech, he emphasized that the main goal is the establishment of real peace, which is possible only in the conditions of a state capable of defending itself with its own forces, and not in the case of dependence on the will of external forces.

Evaluating the internal political situation, Tatoyan criticized both the current authorities and the former leaders of the country. According to him, the current government feeds on the mistakes of the past, and the society no longer connects the future of the country with any of them. As a counterweight to the “sin — accept — surrender” formula, the leader of the initiative offers the concept of “mistakes — lessons — revival.” He also called to abandon the long-term practice of choosing between extremes, stressing the need for simultaneous development of security and democracy, a powerful army and a free economy.

Referring to the topic of the amendment of the Constitution, Arman Tatoyan noted that the problem is not in the document, but in not preserving it. He categorically opposed adapting the Mother Law to the requirements of one person or foreign countries. In the field of foreign policy, the initiative promises to expand military cooperation with both Eastern and Western partners, including France and the United States. A key role is assigned to the Diaspora. it is planned to use modern technologies and artificial intelligence to turn Armenia into a think tank of the South Caucasus.

According to the presented program, the internal policy will focus on creating equal opportunities, not on the formal fight against oligarchy, as well as ensuring the inevitability of responsibility for corruption. In the field of urban development, the principle of complex development will be introduced, where the construction of residential buildings will be strictly interrelated with the creation of infrastructure: schools, parks and roads. In addition, Tatoyan promised to close the illegal quarries, to start the real design and construction of the new Yerevan metro stations, as well as to return Armenian history to the school curriculum.

At the end of the speech, the leader of “Unity Wings” referred to the rights of Artsakh Armenians, promising to consistently advance the issue of their dignified life and safe return. Speaking about the upcoming elections, Tatoyan emphasized that, unlike those candidates who indirectly enjoy the support of different geopolitical centers: Russia, the USA, Europe or Azerbaijan, he is running exclusively as a candidate for Armenia and will be guided only by national interests.

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More than 14 million dollars in real estate and funds have already been returned to the state budget of Armenia as part of a large-scale confiscation process of properties of illegal origin. The General Prosecutor’s Office of the country summarized the results of the profile department’s work in 2025 and published the statistics recorded since the beginning of the application of this legal mechanism.

The expanded session of the board of the department was held on March 7, 2026, RA Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan with the presidency. Deputy Prosecutor General acted as the main speaker Edgar Arsenyan, which presented in detail the previous year’s activities of the Department for confiscation of property of illegal origin. According to him, only during 2025, 157 studies were initiated, based on which 42 lawsuits were submitted to court.

With the lawsuits that are currently being examined, the supervisory body demands the confiscation of 230 immovable and 68 movable properties in favor of the state, as well as participation in 76 legal entities. The total value of claims submitted during the year is close to 36 billion drams. Moreover, during the past year, one reconciliation agreement was successfully concluded, as a result of which almost 69 million drams were transferred to the state treasury.

Evaluating the general picture recorded since the establishment of the profile department in the fall of 2020, the representatives of the prosecutor’s office voiced unprecedented indicators. As of March 1, 2026, 166 lawsuits with a total value of more than 612 billion drams are being examined in the courts. The state claims to return 1568 immovable properties and 356 vehicles. The department emphasizes that the submitted financial claims have a steady growth trend, as the process of evaluating the market value of a number of assets and corporate shares is still ongoing.

The practical results of the five-year work of the confiscation mechanism are expressed in the assets actually returned to the state. As of today, nine immovable properties and two vehicles have been handed over to the state based on one legal judgment and nine settlement agreements. The total value of already confiscated property and funds is about 5.45 billion drams, which is equivalent to about 14.46 million US dollars.

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Former teammate of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, now leader of the “United National Constitutional” party and member of the National Assembly, Hovik Aghazaryan predicts the use of the “Moldovan scenario” to remove the “Our way” movement, considered by the authorities as the main competitor, from the pre-election race.

During the meeting with journalists on March 9, the parliamentarian described the “Our way” movement as a serious alternative to the currently leading and current government in the opposition field. Referring to internal political developments, the politician presented two main scenarios of unfolding of events. The first, which Aghazaryan himself considers unlikely, but not impossible, implies a peaceful transfer of power. accordingly: Nikol Pashinyan cedes leadership to this movement as a result of the election and withdraws from politics as a historical figure.

The second and most likely option, according to the deputy, implies a harsh use of administrative resources. Aghazaryan predicts that seeing the consolidation of the opposition mass, the prime minister may take preventive measures and simply not allow the force to participate in the elections scheduled for June 7. According to his calculations, the registration of the movement may be rejected or it may be removed from the election campaign between May 15-20, which the MP described as a “Moldovan scenario”.

Answering the journalists’ question whether there are sufficient legal grounds for such an extreme decision, Aghazaryan made a rather ironic statement. He noted that if the head of the government finds it difficult to find the necessary grounds, he will personally provide them to the prime minister, adding that otherwise the political field of Armenia will simply be destroyed.

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Armenia is not threatened by the environmental disaster caused by the attacks on Iran’s oil infrastructure. Meteorologists are reassuring the citizens that the toxic smoke and dangerous precipitation that engulfed Tehran will be blown away by the wind.

According to the data of the “Hydrometeorology and Monitoring Center” of the RA Ministry of Environment, air currents are not predicted to enter Armenia from the territory of Iran in the coming days. Experts clarify that the southern cyclones enter the territory of our country mainly from the regions of Iraq, not from Iran. During the next ten days, a steady west-east movement of air masses will be observed in Iran, as a result of which the air currents will be directed from the territory of Iran to Turkmenistan.

The great public interest in weather theory is due to the unprecedented military escalation unfolding in the neighboring country. Let’s remind that since the end of February, the USA and Israel have been carrying out large-scale military operations against Iran. The situation has become extremely aggravated in the last few days, after the targeted strikes on major oil bases and processing complexes near Tehran.

As a result of powerful explosions in fuel storage facilities, the capital of Iran was covered with a thick layer of toxic black smoke, which completely blocked the sunlight. Local residents and international media are warning about the so-called “oil rain”. The highly acidic precipitation mixed with soot and hydrocarbon residues covered the streets of the city with a dangerous layer of black oil.

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The leader of Shirak Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Archbishop Mikael Adjapahyan filed a lawsuit against Stepan Asatryan. The bishop demands to deny the information defaming his honor and dignity and to confiscate the appropriate monetary compensation.

According to the data available in the judicial information system, one of Stepan Asatryan’s last interviews was the basis for the lawsuit. In it, the respondent had publicly stated that the celibate archbishop Michael had a wife and a daughter. Such claims were assessed as open slander aimed at tarnishing the good reputation of a high-ranking clergyman.

It is noteworthy that the respondent’s name is known to the public from the scandalous intra-church scandals of the last period. Stepan Asatryan is a former clergyman, formerly known as priest Ter Aram, who in the fall of 2025, by the decision of the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, was declared disorganized and ranked among the laity. After his resignation, he refused to obey the decisions of the church leadership, in particular, he did not hand over the keys of the Hovannavank for a long time.

Asatryan regularly criticizes the Catholicos of All Armenians and the clergy, trying to raise a wave of protest against the Catholicos.

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The man who threw an incendiary object at the gates of the main building of the National Security Service was officially charged with terrorism. Investigative authorities have already requested his arrest, but the motives of this unprecedented act are still being kept secret.

As Kima Avdalyan, press secretary of the RA Investigative Committee, told the Factor.am news website, a public criminal prosecution was initiated against the arrested citizen under the article of terrorism. Currently, a motion to choose detention against him as a preventive measure has been submitted to the court.

The widely publicized incident took place on March 6. Videos were spread on the Internet, where it is clearly seen how an unknown person throws a burning object in the direction of the main gates of the NSS building in Yerevan, as a result of which a fire breaks out. Following hot pursuit, the Ministry of Internal Affairs announced the arrest of one person suspected of committing the crime and handing him over to the pre-investigation body.

For now, the investigative committee refrains from revealing the identity of the accused and does not comment on the motives that pushed him to such an extreme step.

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The defense side of the well-known businessman and politician Samvel Karapetyan, who is under house arrest, expresses absolute confidence in his early and complete release.

Lawyer: Aram Vardevanyan according to him, the criminal prosecution against the philanthropist is absurd, and Karapetyan himself, despite the months spent in the isolation cell of the special services, maintains a high mood and continues to work on the country’s development programs.

During the meeting with citizens, lawyer Aram Vardevanyan emphasized that their concept of “strong Armenia” is not based on abstract dreams, but on concrete, applied steps. He mentioned five key programs that are able to really change the life of the society. Evaluating the events of the last nine months, the lawyer described what is happening in the country as unprecedented. As an example, he pointed out the arrests of clergymen, the pressures on the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and the unprecedented criminal prosecution against Karapetyan himself. The businessman’s thought that they “will participate in the defense of the church in their own way” became the reason for depriving them of their freedom.

Vardevanyan drew special attention to the state of mind of his client. According to him, having spent more than seven months in the investigative isolation cell of the National Security Service, and now being under house arrest, Karapetyan does not show any malice or depression. The lawyer said that during the visits to the National Security Service detention center, it was the accused who raised the spirits of the defenders by showing a smile and endurance. Vardevanyan is convinced that in order to unite the divided Armenian society, a humanitarian approach free from political bile is necessary, and it is this worldview that Karapetyan shares.

Let’s remind that the arrest of Samvel Karapetyan, a major philanthropist, owner of the “Tashir” group of companies, was one of the most sensational events of last year. His arrest took place against the backdrop of a sharp crisis in relations between the state and the Armenian Apostolic Church. From the beginning, the Armenian opposition described this case as an open political order aimed at neutralizing an influential opponent and weakening its structures financially. The situation worsened dramatically after the state’s decision to de facto expropriate Karapetyan’s company “Electrical Grids of Armenia” (HETC). Opposition forces called this move illegal seizure and redistribution of property.

The Armenian authorities, for their part, categorically deny the accusations of political motives, claiming that the arrest of the businessman and the nationalization of the strategic energy asset were dictated solely by the interests of national security and the need to restore legality in the economic field.

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