Tense Situation in Armavir Region: Clash Between Farmers and Police Erupts

A tense and explosive situation has arisen in the Armavir region for over an hour now. More than 400 villagers near the Akhnalık village have closed the main section of the Yerevan-Armavir highway in protest. As a result of the road closure, traffic jams extend for several kilometers.

In an interview with photojournalist Gagik Shamshyan, protesters stated, “Our patience has run out, there is no more room. We have reached out to everyone and no one responds. Instead of the village cracking, it is the authorities who are cracking. Neither the electricity network nor the water supply answers us; we have been deceived for months. That’s why we have taken this step. It’s not pleasant for us to come out in this heat and block the road. If our issues are not resolved, we will remain here and will not leave. Enough is enough; we are tired of being toyed with. We have been reaching out to the governor for a month without any response. They justify it by saying that the electricity goes off when it’s windy. What wind are they talking about when there hasn't been any wind for days? Enough is enough; we demand that the governor and the Minister of Economy come and provide conclusive answers to our questions.”

Present at the scene were Karen Hakobyan, head of the Armavir regional police, Samvel Khmelyan, the chief of the Metsamor police, and Marlen Sargsyan, commander of the first platoon of the second company of the traffic police, who aimed to persuade the villagers to reopen the road. The villagers refused, leading to a scuffle between the police and them.