Armenia police clash with protesters in Yerevan, 50 people hospitalised – agencies

Armenian police clashed with protesters in Yerevan on Friday during the latest in a series of anti-government demonstrations and at least 50 people were hospitalised, Russian news agencies reported.

Video posted by RIA showed an angry crowd confronting police and throwing what appeared to be bottles at them. The sound of explosions could also be heard.

Interfax quoted the deputy head of national police as saying officers used stun grenades after demonstrators threw stones.

Pressure against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has increased since he moved closer to normalising relations with Azerbaijan, which defeated Armenia in a six-week war in 2020.

Interfax cited the Armenian health ministry as saying of those taken to hospital, 34 were policemen.

The war, which centred around the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave, ended with a Russia-brokered peace deal that led to a significant loss of territory for Armenia.

Previous protests saw thousands of people block government buildings, close roads and shut down the metro system.