Azerbaijan has detained an Armenian resident of Khankendi [Stepanakert in Armenian] in Nagorno-Karabakh on suspicion of planning an “armed provocation”.
Pro-government media reported on Saturday that 58-year-old Karen Avanesyan had hid a Kalashnikov assault rifle, four boxes of ammunition, and five grenades near his house in the forest. According to the report, Avanesyan resisted the police during the arrest with a gun and threw three hand grenades, wounding one police officer. The suspect also sustained injuries during the clash with the police.
There have been no further reports about the reasons behind the alleged planned attack and the location where it would talk place. Video and photo footage released by APA news agency shows Avanesyan moving back and forth multiple times in an unknown direction with a heavy bag. The later footage shows the suspect being seized by the police and weapons in the scene. Azerbaijan’s Prosecutor’s Office and the State Security Service have launched an investigation.
According to media reports, the attack coincided with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s visit to Nagorno-Karabakh.
Avanesyan is among few Armenians who remained in Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijan’s lightning offensive in September 2023 that resulted in full surrender of the breakaway region to Azerbaijan and the exodus of thousands of Armenians. According to Tigran Abrahamyan, an MP from the opposition I Have Honour faction, there were up to 50 Armenians who stayed in the region after Azerbaijan’s final offensive in 2023, only around 10 remain as of 2025. With regards to charges leveled against Avanesyan, Abrahamyan said it was ‘difficult to say what actually happened’.
