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We learned about this from the bill of indictment of the criminal case brought forth to investigate the circumstances of Khalafyan’s death, which was been sent to the Kotayk District Court of First Instance. “There is a tear under the left arm of Vahan Khalafyan’s sweater which is a result of mechanical stretching,” states the bill of indictment. This means that at some point during the time that he was being subjected to violence, the 24 year-old young man tried to resist. This destroys the explanation proposed in the indictment that Khalafyan, after being tortured, and in a beaten state, took the knife from the shelf and stabbed himself twice. Next Tuesday the proceedings of this case will begin, and four policemen will be in the defendants’ seats.

This post belongs to the Prosperous Armenian Party (PAP) by coalition quota. Two weeks have already passed since the PAP put forth Sergey Bagratyan’s candidacy for this post. Since that time two government sessions have taken place, but no appointment has been made.

However, press secretary of the Armenian National Congress Arman Musinyan told us yesterday that they do not have such information yet. Let us add also that news is circulating that in Armenia Clinton will meet with the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, who on July 3 will be in Yerevan and will leave for Baku on July 5. Before arriving in Yerevan, according to press secretary of the NKR President David Babayan, on July 2 the Co-Chairs will be in Stepanakert where they will meet NKR President Bako Sahakyan and Minister of Foreign Affairs Georgi Petrosyan.

The next issue of the “Haykakan Zhamanak” daily will be released on Tuesday, July 6.

If privatization of the gas pipeline were to occur, the most likely buyer is considered to be Azerbaijan. According to the intergovernmental agreement between Azerbaijan and Georgia signed in December of 2008, almost the entire gas distribution system (with the exception of the section in Tbilisi, which belongs to a Kazakh organization) has been given to the concessionary management of the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan for 5 years. And if the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan also buys that section, the gas which enters Armenia will be under Azerbaijan’s control. In regards to this worrisome fact, “ArmRusGasArd” representatives told “HZH” that it is up to Georgia to decide.

According to the ANC report, Armenian-Turkish relations and the situation of the Karabakh conflict resolution process were also discussed.

According to the official announcement, the key issues to be discussed will be the Karabakh conflict and Armenian-Turkish relations. Azerbaijani media sources reported yesterday that during the days that Clinton will be in Yerevan and Baku (July 4), the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs will also be in the region; a meeting between the Co-Chairs and the US Secretary of State has not been ruled out. The Co-Chairs will visit the region to prepare for the meeting between the Foreign Affairs Ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. The meeting is to take place within the framework of the informal meeting of the OSCE Foreign Ministers in Almaty, on July 16-17.

Khalafyan was taken to the Charentsavan police station on April 13 of this year, and in the evening was taken to the hospital from the police station with fatal injuries. In connection with the criminal case which was investigated by the SIS, the head of Charentsavan’s investigation department and three policemen are charged with having subjected Khalafyan to torture. According to the SIS, the two stabs which caused Khalafyan’s death were made by Khalafyan himself after being subjected to torture. But the relatives and attorneys of the young man are sure that Khalafyan was killed by the policemen.

In fact, during the last month the Armenian Dram has appreciated in value by 3.5 percent, in the past two months by six percent and the past three months by 10 percent. This is important since the appreciation of the Dram should have led to a reduction in the prices, in Drams, of imported products. Products bought abroad in Dollars or Euros and imported to Armenia see a reduction in price in Drams, to the same degree that the Dram appreciates in value. Whereas, according to the official statistics, prices have not decreased but rather increased. Let us note that as compared to April of this year, in May the prices increased by 1 percent and with this result Armenia is a record holder among the former Soviet countries. In other countries prices have either not increased, or they have just decreased.

According to the acknowledgment, the information has been registered and will be considered in accordance with the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

Head of the RA DM central military hospital Michael Michaelyan said so yesterday and added that despite that, doctors struggle for his life. As to the other three soldiers, they are safe. Serzh Sargsyan, who was in Karabakh on June 24, had also visited the military hospital in Stepanakert and met the two soldiers injured on June 18. On June 27, Serzh Sargsyan returned to Yerevan. His visit to Karabakh was related to the incident that occurred on June 18 at the contact line.

In Vardanyan’s, on the other hand, as per calculations of our experts, the cost of that construction would range from 1.6 to 1.8 billion dollars. The reason for such a difference in estimates, according to the Minister, could be the fact that Europeans configure the salary of a worker working on that construction to be 5,000.000 to 7,000.00 dollars. “Unfortunately, our workers do not make that much,” said the Minister. The Minister specified neither a definite date yesterday, nor a definite source of financing; he also did not offer any other details. Let us simply remind you that two years ago, speaking about the construction dates of the railway on some occasion, RA Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan said, “the desired scenario for the government is to start the construction at the end of 2009.”

This post had been vacant since June 21, when former Minister Mkhitar Mnatsakanyan resigned. The name of the individual aspiring to this position was submitted to the PAP with the coalition quota, was known the day after Mnatsakanyan’s resignation, but Serzh Sargsyan was in no big hurry to appoint him.

stated the Minister of Defense of Azerbaijan Safar Abiyev yesterday. The young wing of the ruling party “New Azerbaijan” yesterday addressed Ilham Aliyev stating, “the youth are waiting for the President’s call to liberate the holy lands from the enemy”.

Davit Kiramijyan, one of the youngsters who were attacked by the police on May 31 by Saryan’s statue and who are currently in detention, is charged under article 258,3,1 (Hooliganism) and Sargis Gevorgyan is charged under article 316,1 (Violence against a public figure) of RA Criminal Code. Both cases are punishable from a fine to up to 5 years of imprisonment. Kiramijyan has serious health problems, but until today the RA authorities have refused to change his precautionary measure.