make preferableArmenian News - NEWS.am presents a daily digest of Armenia-related top news as of 21.07.2020:
- It was relatively calm on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border Tuesday night, the Defense Ministry spokesperson Shushan Stepanyan wrote on her Facebook.
“In some sections of the border, the opponent violated the ceasefire 17 times, firing 183 shots in the direction of the Armenian positions from small arms," she noted.
As the spokesperson told Armenpress one of the servicemen wounded as a result of Azerbaijan’s military operations on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border is still in extremely critical condition, the others are getting better, and four servicemen already feel fine.
- A total of 35,254 COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in Armenia with 24,206 recoveries and 662 deaths, the health ministry reported.
And 10,171 COVID-19 cases are currently undergoing treatment. In total, 148,180 tests have been completed.
Thus, we have 273 new cases and 704 recoveries.
Six cases of death were registered yesterday when the patients tested positive for COVID-19, but the cause of death was another disease. The total of such cases is 215.
On July 7, the country was in ninth place in the world, and on July 10 it returned to tenth place.
According to worldometers.info, 35,254 cases were reported in Armenia - 11,896 cases per million inhabitants. The death toll has reached 662: this is 223 deaths per million inhabitants - Armenia is now 23rd in the world in this respect.
- A smuggler and drug dealer who illegally crossed the Armenian-Iranian border with five kilos of heroin has been neutralized in Armenia.
According to the press service of the police, information about the violator came in early July. The operation to capture the criminal was carried out in the Syunik province.
The violator turned out to be a 24-year-old citizen of Iran, Azerbaijani by nationality.
A criminal case was initiated. The man is arrested. The investigation continues.
- The US Congress approved Congressman Frank Pallone's amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which requires transparency of the Pentagon's foreign aid programs.
The amendment requires a report from the Secretary of Defense, in collaboration with the Secretary of State, addressing allegations that some units of foreign countries that have participated in security cooperation programs may have also committed gross violations of internationally-recognized human rights before or while receiving US security assistance.
As the expert Suren Sargsyan said, although Azerbaijan is not indicated in the document, it is fully related to the US-Azerbaijani relations. He recalled that over the past two years, Azerbaijan has received military aid from the US of $ 100 million.
