Armenian News - NEWS.am presents the daily digest of Armenia-related top news as of 07.12.21:
• Armenia was shocked by the devastating earthquake that struck the country at 11:41 am local time on December 7, 1988; that is, 33 years ago on this day.
This strong underground shaking virtually destroyed Armenia’s northern portion, with a population of one million, in a matter of just thirty seconds.
At Spitak town, the epicenter of this tremor, the quake measured over magnitude 7. Shocks were recorded also in the capital city Yerevan as well as in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia.
According to official figures, the disaster claimed around 25,000 lives, about 19,000 people became disabled and close to 530,000 others were left homeless.
Spitak was destroyed almost completely as a result of this earthquake. Also, 21 cities and townships plus 324 villages were ruined. Eighty percent of Armenia’s second-largest city, Gyumri—Leninakan, at the time—was annihilated. There was considerable destruction also in the country’s third-largest city, Vanadzor—Kirovakan, at the time.
But the international community lent a helping hand to the country, in an effort to heal the wounds of this great calamity.
• Due to the "efforts" by the MPs of the ruling majority “Civil Contract” Faction, the National Assembly (NA) of Armenia on Tuesday did not put on the agenda of its sittings the NA draft statement on border demarcation and delimitation issues that was submitted by the opposition "Armenia" Faction.
On Monday, the NA Standing Committee on Foreign Relations had given a negative conclusion to this draft statement.
• Film director Arman Chilingaryan's movie "Light Drops Light" was recognized with Golden Winner prize Tokyo Film Awards in Japan, according to the Armenian Embassy in Japan. The film is about Armenia in the 1990s.
The Tokyo Film Awards is a film competition platform initiated by Japanese directors and TV presenters that focuses on short films in an effort to identify young talent.
• A tragic incident took place in downtown Yerevan Monday, shamshyan.com reported.
At around 10:50 am, the patrol police found the dead body of a man near a dumpster at Northern Avenue.
According to the preliminary conclusion of the forensic doctor, no traces of violence were found on this body.
• As of Tuesday morning, 240 new cases of the coronavirus were confirmed in Armenia, and the total number of these cases has reached 341,058 in the country, Armenian News-NEWS.am has learned from the National Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
Also, 27 more deaths from COVID-19 were registered, making the respective total 7,718 cases.