News - Protesters and Karabakh ex-official clash outside Artsakh representation in Armenia, some are detained

A little while ago, a clash took place between a group of displaced Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) residents protesting in front of the Artsakh representation in Armenia and former Artsakh official Karen Shahramanyan. A scuffle began, during which the protesters tore Shahramanyan’s jacket and tore off his tie. Many police officers arrived at the scene. After long negotiations, the situation calm down a little, but some people were detained. From 2010 to 2020 Karen Shahramanyan held the position of Minister of Urban Development of Artsakh, then headed the Cadastre and State Property Management Committee of Artsakh, and in 2021, he was appointed the head of staff of the Artsakh president. As reported earlier, a protest started outside the building of the Artsakh representation in Armenia Friday morning, after which the situation became tense and a group  of demonstrators stormed into the building, demanding a meeting with Samvel Shahramanyan. The President of Artsakh agreed to come out of the building and answer the questions of those gathered outside. Shahramanyan told them that he cannot talk about many issues there because by doing so, he will endanger the interests of Armenia and Artsakh. Also, he stated that no one can dissolve the Artsakh Republic created by the people. But since the protesters kept interrupting, Samvel Shahramanyan suggested meeting with several dozen displaced Artsakh residents inside the building. After that, Shahramanyan had a closed meeting with dozens of displaced Artsakh residents.