In a full-page ad in The New York Times, 23 Diaspora personalities from around the world appealed to their compatriots to make “a long-term commitment toward collectively advancing” Armenia.
Countries in the Caucasus, that sensitive borderland between East and West, are wondering what to expect from Donald Trump, the United States’ choice for president.
In the Armenian capital of Yerevan, where a group of anti-government gunmen took over a police station last Sunday, more sympathy seems to be with the hostage-takers themselves.
One of the members of the Founding Parliament movement that stormed the police building in Yerevan’s southern Erebuni district said the “rebellion” is also aimed at forcing President Serzh Sarkisian to step down.
The statement said the attackers are holding several hostages in the Erebuni police station, adding that “negotiations are under way to release them peacefully.”
During public events for the pope in both the capital, Yerevan, and the northern town of Gyumri, police arrested political activists demanding the release of alleged political prisoners or blocked their attendance at liturgies and prayer services.