Police Raid Armenian Newsroom, Confiscate Unpublished Investigation Into Return of 300,000 Azerbaijanis Days Before Election
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
Just two days before Armenia's parliamentary elections, law enforcement authorities raided the offices of an opposition-linked media outlet, confiscating computers, phones, archives and an unpublished investigative report that journalists say examined one of the campaign's most controversial issues.
Officers from Armenia's National Security Service (NSS) and the Investigative Committee spent more than five hours searching the newsroom of Armat Media on Friday, effectively preventing journalists from carrying out their work as investigators seized equipment and accessed digital systems.
According to Armat Media editor Nelli Avetisyan, authorities confiscated newsroom computers, storage devices and archived materials, including an investigative report the outlet planned to publish later that day regarding claims about the possible return and settlement of 300,000 Azerbaijanis in Armenia.
The issue has become a major point of debate during the election campaign. Opposition parties have repeatedly warned that negotiations between Armenia and Azerbaijan could eventually result in the return of large numbers of Azerbaijanis to Armenia, while the government has denied that any such agreement exists.
Avetisyan said the unpublished investigation was among the materials seized during the search.
"The investigation was scheduled to be published today," she told reporters, suggesting that its confiscation raised concerns about whether the seizure was directly connected to the criminal case cited by investigators.
Armat Media Editor-in-Chief Aghavni Sukiasyan said authorities immediately began accessing the outlet's digital platforms after entering the newsroom.
"The first thing they did was log into our social media pages on our computers," Sukiasyan said.
She further alleged that investigators connected external USB devices they had brought with them to newsroom computers and began reviewing internal data before lawyers were allowed to arrive. According to Sukiasyan, journalists were asked to provide passwords to their phones, while some employees refused. Reporters were also prevented from recording the search while it was underway, she said.
The raid comes amid a widening law enforcement crackdown targeting figures associated with businessman Samvel Karapetyan's Strong Armenia alliance.
Armat Media is owned by Aleksan Aleksanian, a senior member of the alliance who was arrested earlier this week on allegations of vote-buying and illegal campaign financing. Investigators claim Aleksanian used an organization linked to the movement to pay approximately 1,400 individuals and encourage participation in opposition campaign events.
Aleksanian and Strong Armenia leaders have rejected the accusations, describing them as politically motivated and part of a broader effort to weaken the opposition before Sunday's vote.
The media raid follows a series of nationwide operations against the alliance. On Thursday, authorities searched roughly 50 Strong Armenia campaign offices across Armenia and announced criminal charges against dozens of members. Twenty-five individuals were placed under arrest.
Opposition leaders argue that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's government is using law enforcement agencies to intimidate political opponents, silence critical voices and influence the outcome of the election. Government officials reject those claims, insisting that all investigations are based on evidence of criminal wrongdoing.
The seizure of a media outlet's archives and unpublished reporting just days before voters head to the polls is likely to intensify concerns about press freedom and the state of Armenia's democratic institutions.
The raid also occurred as authorities announced new criminal charges against several former senior officials associated with Armenia's pre-2018 governments, further escalating political tensions during the final hours of campaigning.
With Armenians set to vote on Sunday, the search of an opposition-linked newsroom and the confiscation of materials related to one of the election's most sensitive topics are expected to draw increased scrutiny from domestic observers and international organizations monitoring media freedom, democratic governance and the integrity of the electoral process.
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