YEREVAN. – An anti-Russian hysteria is uncalled-for in Armenia. The country’s first Human Rights Defender, “Against Legal Arbitrariness” NGO Executive Director, and public activist Larisa Alaverdyan stated the abovementioned at a press conference on Friday, as she commented on the recent tragic events that occurred in Gyumri, Armenia’s second largest city.

In her view, there is no need to move this matter over to the geopolitical arena, and demand a review of Armenia’s relations with Russia.

“This would mean that those who have planned this tragic incident are familiar with our [, Armenians’,] feelings. I don’t know who did what, but it’s clear that this crime meets the interests of Azerbaijan and Turkey,” Alaverdyan noted, in particular.

As reported earlier, six members of the Avetisyan family—including a two-year-old girl—were shot dead, and a six-month-old baby boy was wounded in their house in Gyumri on Monday. Valery Permyakov, a serviceman of the 102nd Russian Military Base in the city, stands accused in this crime. Permyakov was apprehended by the Russian border guards near the Armenian-Turkish border, and he was arrested on Wednesday. Valery Permyakov is held in custody at the Russian military base.

The soldier is charged under Russian law, with “the murder of more than two people,” and “desertion with a service weapon.” The Investigative Committee of Armenia also has launched a criminal case on the murders.

The Prosecutor General’s Office had said Permyakov will face justice under Russian law, and this information provoked a wave of protests in Armenia, especially in Gyumri and capital city Yerevan.

The police had used special tools to disperse the crowd during Thursday’s clashes in Gyumri, and six police officers and nine civilians had sustained injuries during these clashes.