West Nile virus spreading in Armenia \\ Armenian textbook angers Moscow \\ 5G network coming \\ Armenian cuisine \\ Skull extraction \\ Nuclear plant resumes \\ Mayor shot \\ Sleep apnea \\ Corruption & media \\ Chess \\ and…

7 minutes of Armenia coverage in Transcaucasian Telegraph’s Aug/16/2024 edition.

quality journalism

As you recall from the August 12 telegraph, Armenian authorities released a lengthy report about the alleged crimes and money laundering committed by ex-President Serj’s fugitive son-in-law Mikael Minasyan. He allegedly owned, in part or in full, many big-name companies, mines, and several media outlets including news.am.

News.am, an opposition-oriented outlet with frequent tabloid-esque headlines, in the past denied being controlled by Mikael Minasyan. Today they uploaded a video that appears to be an advertisement of Mikael Minasyan. It praises Minasyan and his past record as a "diplomat"and calls the criminal charges against him "political persecution".

The video milks Minasyan’s genitals and drains his nuts so dry, it can compete against the Gobi Desert. It presents the most artistic form of hawk tuah you have ever seen. The gargling sounds can be heard during the transmission of megabytes passing through YouTube’s wet internet infrastructure. Praise be Daddy Mishik, the Bringer of all Drams and the Payer of All Bills.

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Azerbaijan renews unsubstantiated claims of ceasefire violation by Armenia days before Putin’s planned visit to Baku

Second accusation in two days by Azerbaijan about a supposed ceasefire violation. Armenia’s defense ministry denied the "disinformation" and reminded that Armenia has officially proposed the creation of a joint mechanism to investigate possible violations. The EU envoy Klaar welcomed Armenia’s proposal and said the EU fully supports it.

Some analysts tie Azerbaijan’s misinformation with Putin’s upcoming visit to Baku. As you recall from the August 9 telegraph, Vladimirovich will pay a visit to his southern ally on August 18 to reportedly discuss the export of more Russian gas to Azerbaijan, amid reports that Azerbaijan could increase the volumes of gas (re)exports to EU.

Russia and Azerbaijan signed a comprehensive strategic alliance agreement in February 2022. Under the agreement, the states vow to support each other’s interests and not take steps against it.

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Russia mad at Armenia for using the term "forced annexation" (բռնակցում) in a draft history textbook to describe Russia gaining control over Eastern Armenia in the 19th century

It’s about parts of Armenia occupied by Persia moving under the occupation of Russia under the Treaty of Turkmenchay. This was the part that angered Russia:

In the new 8th grade textbook “Armenian History”, the annexation of Eastern Armenia to the Russian Empire in 1828 is mentioned as “usurpation”. Chapter 6.1 of the textbook is entitled “The Annexation of Eastern Armenia to Russia”. And the Treaty of Turkmencha (signed after the Russo-Persian War of 1826-1828) is presented as an occupation by the Russian Empire.

Russia’s Foreign Ministry rebuked the Armenian authorities and "Western propaganda" and said they expected the term to be removed: "We expect that the Armenian authorities will not allow the transfer of such a textbook to schools and will not turn a blind eye to such unceremonious attempts to distort our common past."

Armenian government does not write history textbooks, so they asked the author to consider revising the phrase "Annexation of Eastern Armenia to Russia" before it’s distributed to schools. The authors said the textbook has been revised.

MINISTRY OFFICIAL: It wasn’t so much a mistake as it was that the authors may not have considered the issue from that perspective. The main complaints were regarding the title of the chapter, not the content, because the content lists the events that happened chronologically in the 19th century. //

How the textbook process works: A draft version of the approved textbook is submitted by the authors to the ministry, which then presents it to the public with a 2-week window for feedback. The authors make corrections and send the finalized textbook to the print shop.

The process of revising the "annexation" phrase came after several complaints, inquiries, and phone calls the ministry and book authors received after presenting the book on the ministry’s website.

It was unclear what originally triggered the process to revise the textbook: the initial complaints received immediately after publishing the book, or Moscow’s public complaint on Thursday. The co-author of the book later suggested that the changes were made sooner and that Russia was responding to the uncorrected draft version.

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CSTO secretariat announces that the war in Ukraine has moved to the zone of CSTO’s responsibility after Ukraine’s invasion of Kursk

"Light my eyes, then?"you might ask. Have no worries, my hairy readers. "Our analytical service operates around the clock. We are closely following the development of the situation and will act according to the organization’s regulations," said the Secretariat, adding that Russia has not requested support from its CSTO "allies".

Zelensky said they have captured hundreds of Russian soldiers as POWs, while a Ukrainian colonel claimed without evidence that the number was 2,000.

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Ambassador of Canada joined the members of EU’s border observer mission in Armenia

Ambassador Turner visited Kapan this week. Canada recently decided to send its observers to join the EU Mission in Armenia.

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EU’s border observer missions in Armenia and Georgia are cooperating

The Mission in Armenia joined the Mission in Georgia to patrol the South Ossetian line of contact.

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Defense Minister Papikyan accompanied a group of journalists to new engineering structures near frontlines

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what’s cooking elsewhere?

• Hundreds of people were hospitalized in Azerbaijan with signs of food poisoning after attending a mourning ceremony in Ganja. source,
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• Facebook removed a Russian bot farm that supported the Georgian government and targeted pro-West figures by spreading "fake news" and AI-generated content.
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🍿 Mass brawl in Turkish parliament after an opposition MP insults a ruling MP during a motion to strip another opposition MP of mandate.
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Armenian patient dies from West Nile virus, dozens infected

West Nile virus transmitted from mosquito to human was recorded for the first time in Armenia: 1 dead, 20 hospitalized.

Youngest: 25 y/o

Eldest: 65 y/o

Condition: medium to serious, all patients have underlying chronic illnesses

Cure: none, no vaccines, just has to treat the symptoms until the condition improves

Symptoms: headache, fever, muscle pain or weakness, skin rash, eye pain, neck pain, …

Transmission: mosquito to human only

How it’s spread: global warming, infected birds flying around and infecting mosquitos which then infect humans, …

Elsewhere: 243 infections in USA and EU, at least 8 deaths

In other news: As reported in July 23 telegraphthe World Health Organization warned about the spread of dangerous mosquito virus in Iran. The government of Iran reported the first 2 locally acquired cases of "dengue"in patients who did not travel.

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Turkey quarantines a traveler from Senegal to monitor for possible monkeypox virus

Sweden recorded its first infection, the first outside Africa.

Monkeypox was also detected in San Francisco’s wastewater and in other parts of the United States.

Armenian authorities said no monkeypox cases have been detected in the country (yet).

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Armenian government allocates frequencies to allow the development of 5G broadband network

The High-Tech Ministry has freed the 3600-3800 MHz frequency band to allow mobile operators to compete for it through a tender.

The Ministry is developing the quality standards and the terms of the tender package. Meetings were held with industry players.

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update: a mayor is shot

You recall a telegraph we received yesterday about occupants of a black NIVA car shooting the mayor of Tlik and his son.

The authorities say it was a family dispute with the relatives of the mayor’s son-in-law. It began with fists before escalating to rocks and bullets. The mayor’s son was injured while attempting to stop the fight. The initial report of the mayor’s son also being shot appears to be false.

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49% of men and 37% of women in Armenia are at risk of sleep apnea: VIDEO

It’s when you periodically stop breathing during sleep. This can lead to a host of serious health issues.

Do you…

• Constantly feel sleepy during the daytime?

• Snore at night?

• Wake up with a dry mouth or headache?

• Have excess weight?

If yes, you might be one of the seven dwarfs, or a human with sleep apnea. If you have it, it won’t go away without making changes, so the sooner you treat it, the better, say experts.

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the Metsamor nuclear plant resumes operation slightly ahead of schedule

The NPP was under a routine maintenance. Its reactor’s turbogenerators have since been reconnected to the national power grid, about a week ahead of schedule.

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Armenia’s Foreign Ministry and Observer Research Foundation will host the inaugural edition of Yerevan Dialogue titled “Shaping Tomorrow Today” on September 9-11

MFA MIRZOYAN: The Yerevan Dialogue will provide a vital platform to ask critical questions, voice diverging opinions & converging insights to seek sustainable solutions for Shaping Tomorrow Today. The world is changing rapidly before our eyes. The evolving landscape of global relations, the erosion of international law, the…

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anti-corruption: hospital is accused of bribing state inspectors to ignore safety violations

The report doesn’t mention which hospital. It says the chief inspector requested and received ֏1 million in bribes last year to ignore the discovered violations.

The chief inspector is under house arrest. Two hospital officials who gave the bribe had their charges dropped for cooperation and remorse.

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Armenian construction worker has his skull "patched" after falling from the second floor: VIDEO

Artak woke up 20 days after the incident to learn he is now a cyborg from Cyberpunk.

It’s a procedure for patients who need part of their skull bone removed to allow the brain to expand after the trauma. Doctors took a 3D scan of Artak’s skull and created a new polymer cap for the missing section.

MORE: I’m not going to do construction anymore. Maybe I’ll become a doctor, hahaha. [bleep bloop bleep bloop haha bleeep]

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Levon Aronian finishes 4th in Saint Louis Chess

(1) Nepomniachtchi – 5.5

(2) Alireza Firouzja – 5.5

(3) Lagrave – 5.5

(4) Aronian – 5

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Meet the Female Chefs Blazing a New Trail in Armenian Cuisine: VOGUE

With Georgian cuisine being all the rage in recent years (cue a boat-shaped adjaruli khachapuri bread oozing with cheese and picturesquely topped with a raw egg), neighboring Armenia and its food culture are on the rise among gourmets worldwide.

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