11 Armenian Service Members Have Died in 2026, Defense Ministry Says 

Eleven members of Armenia’s Armed Forces have died so far in 2026, including five conscripts, according to the Defense Ministry, which says only part of the total is directly tied to military service.

Defense Ministry spokesperson Aram Torosyan told Armenpress that the headline number can be misleading because the ministry also records deaths involving service members that happen outside the line of duty, including from illness, traffic accidents and other causes.

“If we are talking about the reporting period of this year, we have had 11 deaths, only five of which involved conscripts,” Torosyan said. He added that the total includes deaths caused by illness and a mine explosion.

The ministry has recorded four suicides and two cases of incitement to suicide this year, Torosyan said. Three of those six cases occurred in circumstances connected to military service, while preliminary findings in some of the others point to personal or other factors rather than abuse or hazing inside military units.

Two murders have also been recorded during the 2026 reporting period, according to Torosyan.

He rejected claims that deaths in the military are increasing, arguing that public discussion often combines cases connected to service with deaths that have no direct link to military duties.

“We often see media reports saying that 30 deaths were recorded in the army during the year, but no one says how many of those 30 deaths actually occurred in the army, which were related to service and how many were unrelated to service,” Torosyan said.

The ministry is unusual among state institutions in publicly reporting deaths within its ranks even when they occur at home or under circumstances unrelated to work, he added.

Torosyan said the ministry accepts responsibility for deaths and serious incidents connected to military service but urged officials and public figures not to use the statistics for political purposes.

“We are responsible for incidents occurring in the army in circumstances related to military service,” he said.

He pointed to earlier years to argue that the current figures should be viewed in context. According to data he presented, Armenia recorded 15 murders, suicides and cases of incitement to suicide linked to military service in 2007 and 19 in 2016.

In 2025, no murders were recorded in the armed forces, Torosyan said. Six deaths were linked to military service that year, including two cases he said were believed to involve incitement to suicide.

Torosyan also cited national suicide statistics, saying Armenia recorded 179 suicides in 2024, 199 in 2025 and 94 in the first half of 2026. He said problems affecting the military cannot be examined separately from broader social trends.

Still, he said every death involving a service member is reviewed individually.

The Defense Ministry and Armenia’s Investigative Committee generally announce such cases publicly. Torosyan said the ministry does not make legal assessments while investigations are underway and the circumstances remain unclear.

He also disputed criticism that the ministry fails to support grieving families, saying Defense Ministry representatives remain in contact with relatives and express condolences following fatal incidents.

Torosyan said the armed forces have expanded prevention efforts aimed at suicide, self-harm and violence between service members. Military units are instructed to identify personnel considered at risk and monitor their psychological and emotional condition.

The ministry has developed guidelines on suicide prevention and non-statutory relations, while military units receive regular briefings on accidents and other incidents so commanders can identify recurring problems and respond more quickly.

Officer-psychologists and commanders responsible for morale and psychological support also receive regular training, Torosyan said. Defense Ministry teams are periodically sent to military units to work directly with personnel.

Preventing abuse and other non-statutory relations remains part of the military’s annual disciplinary agenda, he added.

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