CIVILNET

Two years have passed since September 19, 2023 — the day of the final assault on Artsakh and the ethnic cleansing of 150,000 Armenians from the region. In this episode of Insights, Eric Hacopian confronts the myths and the leadership failures of the past 30 years, examining why Artsakh was truly lost. He also explains what the “Third Armenian Republic” means for the country’s future.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #insightswitherichacopian

As an independent, reader-funded media platform, we deliver fact-checked, on the ground reporting from Armenia. CivilNet's coverage from all corners of the country is brought to you in Armenian, Russian, English and French. #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

In the past few years—particularly after the deployment of the EU monitoring mission to Armenia’s borders—the spread of disinformation about the European Union has intensified. Who is behind the false narratives targeting Armenia’s European integration, how are they being disseminated, and what measures is the EU taking to counter this propaganda?_This video was produced within the project "Assisting independent media and CSOs in enhancing the access to reliable information on the European Union and EU enlargement on social media in Armenia". The project is being implemented by the Public Journalism Club in cooperation with EUROPEUM European Policy Institute funded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic (Transformation Promotion Programme)_#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

📍 Armenia’s Ombudsperson Anahit Manasyan attempted to reach out to her Azerbaijani counterpart to establish communication on humanitarian issues, but has received no response.📍 U.S. President Donald Trump says it was a “great honor” to help broker peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan.📍 Moved by Mountains: Armenians Confront Themselves on Ararat https://youtu.be/0Sw_TqbCMiA?si=AtfAj5ZaH9ME02B_ #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

A short documentary on Armenians from Armenia and across the world who have climbed Ararat. The film delves into the grief and the ancestral past that climbers come face to face with on the journey.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ

📍 Armenia and Turkey’s special envoys held a historic meeting in Yerevan and pledged to advance normalization of relations.📍 Armenia’s military should not be the country’s primary guarantor of security, said Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.📍 One of the few Armenians who stayed in Karabakh after the 2023 ethnic cleansing was arrested after allegedly attempting to stage an armed attack during an event attended by Ilham Aliyev.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #dailyarmenia

📍 Only 15% of the estimated 600,000 Armenians who are expected to submit mandatory income declarations have done so, signaling strong public opposition to the new filing requirements.📍 A step-by-step guide to Armenia’s new income declaration system: https://shorturl.at/w83Et📍 Armenia’s largest food exporter has suffered more than $2 million in losses, a top executive said, as more than a hundred of its trucks remain halted in Russia. It is the latest trade disruption between Yerevan and Moscow.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #civilnetbusiness

In this episode of Insights with Eric Hacopian, we break down three pressing issues: the Foreign Ministry’s spying scandal and its culture of impunity, new UN data showing Armenia’s surprising demographic growth, and the devastating humanitarian crisis in Gaza — including the role of an Armenian figure at its center.#CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ #insightswitherichacopian

On September 8, Armenia’s political discourse sank to a new low when Artur Hovhannisyan, secretary of the ruling Civil Contract faction, launched a personal and sexist attack against opposition MP Taguhi Tovmasyan during a press briefing inside the National Assembly.

The incident followed Hovhannisyan’s interruption of Tovmasyan’s earlier press conference on Armenian prisoners of war held in Baku. Tovmasyan later wrote to Speaker Alen Simonyan, accusing Hovhannisyan of obstructing her parliamentary work and violating journalists’ rights. She also demanded that he undergo daily drug tests before entering parliament.

Later that day, Hovhannisyan responded with remarks widely seen as defamatory and sexist, explicitly implying that Tovmasyan had acquired her property by providing sexual services:

“You’re journalists – and none of you journalists have three or four apartments on Northern Avenue, right? Let her get tested for STDs every day so we understand where those four apartments came from. How does a low-paid journalist (author’s note: Taguhi Tovmasyan worked as a journalist before entering politics) afford apartments on Northern Avenue and elsewhere – perhaps through other services?”

Tovmasyan denied owning four apartments and announced that she would sue Hovhannisyan for defamation.

Prominent human rights defender Zaruhi Hovhannisyan strongly condemned Artur Hovhannisyan’s rhetoric:

“What is happening in the discourse of Armenia’s political field is simply unacceptable. Targeted, defamatory, sexist speech against women engaged in public life has been normalized and fully reflects patriarchal thinking. Women’s personal lives, sexuality, underwear, and behavior are especially targeted. These tendencies have always existed, but the most alarming thing now is that this rhetoric is being spread by male politicians sitting on the highest platforms. This is not only a gross violation of ethics but also an expression of misogyny.”

In today's podcast, CivilNet sits down with writer and producer Nyree Abrahamyan to discuss her work documenting stories from Artsakh. The conversation centers on her cookbook, Artsakh: A Taste of Home, which preserves a threatened culture through recipes and personal narratives collected in the wake of the 2023 Karabakh ethnic cleansing. She explains how storytelling, from her award-winning Country of Dust podcast, to this cookbook, serves as an act of resistance against cultural erasure. Nyree shares her experience listening to displaced families, reveals the significance of food as a keeper of memory, and believes that kitchens around the world can become active bearers of culture. #CivilNet #ՍիվիլՆեթ