Latest news with #Tavush
Khaleej Times
a day ago
- Khaleej Times
Glamping in Armenia: The trendiest new outdoor escape for UAE travellers
Armenia is quickly becoming one of the hottest new travel trends among UAE residents, thanks to the rapid rise in popularity of glamping, a chic and comfortable alternative to traditional camping. With short direct flights and new visa-free access for GCC nationals and residents from July 1, Armenia is becoming an even more accessible escape for nature lovers, offering breathtaking landscapes, rich cultural experiences, and unique glamping opportunities in its unspoiled outdoors. Glamping is redefining travel for UAE visitors eager to combine outdoor adventure with comfort. Armenia's top glamping sites in regions such as Lori and Tavush, offer luxury tents set amid breathtaking scenery, complete with plush bedding and private amenities. Guests can explore ancient monasteries, hike forested trails, ride horses through the mountains, and dine on farm-fresh local cuisine, all while surrounded by Armenia's unspoiled natural beauty. With its unique blend of nature, culture, and authentic gastronomy, glamping in Armenia delivers an immersive experience unlike any other. Visitors can enjoy not only remarkable scenery but also curated local experiences, including gourmet Armenian cuisine served under starlit skies, personalized hospitality, and engaging cultural encounters. This aligns perfectly with current lifestyle trends, focusing on wellness, sustainability, and genuine connections with nature and community. Armenia's flourishing popularity highlights its growing role as a must-visit destination, attracting lifestyle-oriented travellers seeking a fresh, exciting, and convenient outdoor experience.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Canadian cleric arrested in Armenia in connection to alleged coup attempt
A prominent Canadian cleric of the Armenian Apostolic Church is among more than a dozen people Armenia's security services have arrested in connection to an alleged coup attempt this week. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, who heads the Tavush Diocese in Armenia's northeast, grabbed national attention last year in the Southern Caucasus country when he began leading a protest movement asking for the resignation of its prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, and even saying he would be open to replacing him as Armenia's leader. That movement picked up steam following land concessions made by Armenia to neighbouring Azerbaijan that involved the handover of Armenian border villages. Galstanyan, a dual Canadian and Armenian citizen, served as primate of the Armenian Diocese of Canada in Montreal from 2003 to 2013. Pashinyan praised the work of law enforcement on his Facebook page, writing in Armenian that they prevented a "large and despicable" plan to destabilize his government through acts of terrorism and seize power. He also linked to a statement by Armenia's Investigative Committee, which had carried out the arrests. The committee said it had seized explosives and weaponry, and accused Galstanyan's protest movement of planning to conduct bombings and stage accidents on major roads to disrupt traffic. Galstanyan's movement has denied the charges, calling them "fiction." Reached for comment, Global Affairs Canada said it is "aware that a Canadian citizen was arrested in Armenia," and added "consular officials are in contact with local authorities to gather more information." The arrests come after escalating tensions between the Armenian government and the country's Apostolic Church, which has been increasingly critical of Pashinyan after Armenia's loss to Azerbaijan in a 2020 war over the then Armenian-controlled enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, and Azerbaijan's military campaign in September 2023 that forced the territory's approximately 120,000 ethnic Armenians to flee, abandoning their homes. Last month, Pashinyan accused the head of the church, Catholicos Karekin II, of secretly fathering a child despite a vow of celibacy. An Armenian priest then implied in a social media post Pashinyan is circumcised and not a true Christian. Earlier this week, Pashinyan took to Facebook to say he is ready to invite both the catholicos and the priest over and "prove otherwise." Citing confidentiality, Global Affairs Canada said it cannot disclose further information about its involvement since Galstanyan's arrest. The Canadian government inaugurated its embassy in Armenia in October 2023, and has recently staffed up its presence there due to the conflict between neighbouring Iran and Israel, which has triggered an exodus from the Iran-Armenia border, including some Canadians. In November 2022, Galstanyan attended the opening of a smaller Canadian diplomatic office, an honourary consul, as a guest. In 2020, in the final days of the war against Azerbaijan, Galstanyan made waves on social media with a performance of an Armenian liturgical hymn at a cathedral in the Nagorno-Karabakh city of Shushi, even as bombs could be heard landing outside the structure. Former immigration minister Jason Kenney had shared the video on his social media channels at the time, calling Galstanyan a "dear friend" and saying it was touching to see.
CBC
26-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Canadian cleric arrested in Armenia in connection to alleged coup attempt
A prominent Canadian cleric of the Armenian Apostolic Church is among more than a dozen people Armenia's security services have arrested in connection to an alleged coup attempt this week. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, who heads the Tavush Diocese in Armenia's northeast, grabbed national attention last year in the Southern Caucasus country when he began leading a protest movement asking for the resignation of its prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, and even saying he would be open to replacing him as Armenia's leader. That movement picked up steam following land concessions made by Armenia to neighbouring Azerbaijan that involved the handover of Armenian border villages. Galstanyan, a dual Canadian and Armenian citizen, served as primate of the Armenian Diocese of Canada in Montreal from 2003 to 2013. Pashinyan praised the work of law enforcement on his Facebook page, writing in Armenian that they prevented a "large and despicable" plan to destabilize his government through acts of terrorism and seize power. He also linked to a statement by Armenia's Investigative Committee, which had carried out the arrests. The committee said it had seized explosives and weaponry, and accused Galstanyan's protest movement of planning to conduct bombings and stage accidents on major roads to disrupt traffic. Galstanyan's movement has denied the charges, calling them "fiction." Reached for comment, Global Affairs Canada said it is "aware that a Canadian citizen was arrested in Armenia," and added "consular officials are in contact with local authorities to gather more information." The arrests come after escalating tensions between the Armenian government and the country's Apostolic Church, which has been increasingly critical of Pashinyan after Armenia's loss to Azerbaijan in a 2020 war over the then Armenian-controlled enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, and Azerbaijan's military campaign in September 2023 that forced the territory's approximately 120,000 ethnic Armenians to flee, abandoning their homes. Last month, Pashinyan accused the head of the church, Catholicos Karekin II, of secretly fathering a child despite a vow of celibacy. An Armenian priest then implied in a social media post Pashinyan is circumcised and not a true Christian. Earlier this week, Pashinyan took to Facebook to say he is ready to invite both the catholicos and the priest over and "prove otherwise." Citing confidentiality, Global Affairs Canada said it cannot disclose further information about its involvement since Galstanyan's arrest. The Canadian government inaugurated its embassy in Armenia in October 2023, and has recently staffed up its presence there due to the conflict between neighbouring Iran and Israel, which has triggered an exodus from the Iran-Armenia border, including some Canadians. In November 2022, Galstanyan attended the opening of a smaller Canadian diplomatic office, an honourary consul, as a guest. In 2020, in the final days of the war against Azerbaijan, Galstanyan made waves on social media with a performance of an Armenian liturgical hymn at a cathedral in the Nagorno-Karabakh city of Shushi, even as bombs could be heard landing outside the structure. Former immigration minister Jason Kenney had shared the video on his social media channels at the time, calling Galstanyan a "dear friend" and saying it was touching to see.
CTV News
25-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Armenian authorities arrest archbishop, accusing him of plotting against government, second recent arrest of political opponent
Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, and Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan shake hands before a meeting at Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, Oct. 6, 2022. (Turkish Presidency via AP, file) YEREVAN, Armenia — Armenia's security services arrested one of the country's top religious leaders on terrorism charges Wednesday and accused him of plotting to overthrow the government, the second arrest in a week of a prominent political opponent. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, a major figure in the influential Apostolic Church, was arrested by Armenia's Investigative Committee, which accused him of planning to carry out bombings and arson attacks to disrupt power supplies and stage accidents on major roads to paralyze traffic. His lawyer described the charges as 'fiction.' Galstanyan leads the Sacred Struggle opposition movement and has demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who was the focus of protests last year by tens of thousands of demonstrators after Armenia agreed to hand over control of several border villages to bitter rival Azerbaijan and to normalize relations between the neighbors. Galstanyan leads the Tavush Diocese in northeastern Armenia and spearheaded a movement that opposed the handover of the villages in the country, which was once part of the Soviet Union. Although the territorial concession was the movement's core issue, it has expanded to a wide array of complaints about Pashinyan, who came to power in 2018. The decision to turn over the villages followed a lightning military campaign in September 2023, in which Azerbaijan's military forced ethnic Armenian separatists in the Karabakh region to capitulate. Pashinyan wrote on social media that the security services had foiled a plot by 'the criminal oligarch clergy to destabilize Armenia and take power.' Officials said 13 others also were detained amid raids by police on the homes of dozens of opposition activists. The Investigative Committee said it carried out over 90 searches and recovered evidence that included firearms and ammunition. In addition to disputing the charges, Galstanyan's lawyer, Sergei Harutyunyan, said police searched the cleric's residence for six hours but found only smoke bombs that are commonly used at protests in Armenia. 'They spent time studying every room, every closet, every letter; they recorded everything,' Harutyunyan said. Attempts to impeach Pashinyan were unsuccessful, but the relationship between him and the Apostolic Church has deteriorated. On June 8, Pashinyan called for church leader Catholicos Karekin II to resign after accusing him of fathering a child despite a vow of celibacy. The church released a statement at the time accusing Pashinyan of undermining Armenia's 'spiritual unity' but did not address the claim about the child. Pashinyan's claim sparked fresh anger among the church's followers, including Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, who appeared in a video saying that the religious institution was under attack. Karapetyan, 59, was detained June 18, days after the clip was posted online, and accused of calling for seizing power in the country. Pashinyan later said the billionaire's energy company, Electricity Networks of Armenia, would be nationalized. Avet Demourian, The Associated Press
Associated Press
25-06-2025
- Politics
- Associated Press
Armenian authorities arrest an archbishop and accuse him of plotting against the government
YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) — Armenia's security services arrested one of the country's top religious leaders on terrorism charges Wednesday and accused him of plotting to overthrow the government, the second arrest in a week of a prominent political opponent. Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, a major figure in the influential Apostolic Church, was arrested by Armenia's Investigative Committee, which accused him of planning to carry out bombings and arson attacks to disrupt power supplies and stage accidents on major roads to paralyze traffic. His lawyer described the charges as 'fiction.' Galstanyan leads the Sacred Struggle opposition movement and has demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, who was the focus of protests last year by tens of thousands of demonstrators after Armenia agreed to hand over control of several border villages to bitter rival Azerbaijan and to normalize relations between the neighbors. Galstanyan leads the Tavush Diocese in northeastern Armenia and spearheaded a movement that opposed the handover of the villages in the country, which was once part of the Soviet Union. Although the territorial concession was the movement's core issue, it has expanded to a wide array of complaints about Pashinyan, who came to power in 2018. The decision to turn over the villages followed a lightning military campaign in September 2023, in which Azerbaijan's military forced ethnic Armenian separatists in the Karabakh region to capitulate. Pashinyan wrote on social media that the security services had foiled a plot by 'the criminal oligarch clergy to destabilize Armenia and take power.' Officials said 13 others also were detained amid raids by police on the homes of dozens of opposition activists. The Investigative Committee said it carried out over 90 searches and recovered evidence that included firearms and ammunition. In addition to disputing the charges, Galstanyan's lawyer, Sergei Harutyunyan, said police searched the cleric's residence for six hours but found only smoke bombs that are commonly used at protests in Armenia. 'They spent time studying every room, every closet, every letter; they recorded everything,' Harutyunyan said. Attempts to impeach Pashinyan were unsuccessful, but the relationship between him and the Apostolic Church has deteriorated. On June 8, Pashinyan called for church leader Catholicos Karekin II to resign after accusing him of fathering a child despite a vow of celibacy. The church released a statement at the time accusing Pashinyan of undermining Armenia's 'spiritual unity' but did not address the claim about the child. Pashinyan's claim sparked fresh anger among the church's followers, including Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan, who appeared in a video saying that the religious institution was under attack. Karapetyan, 59, was detained June 18, days after the clip was posted online, and accused of calling for seizing power in the country. Pashinyan later said the billionaire's energy company, Electricity Networks of Armenia, would be nationalized.
