In the period from August 23 to 26, three deaths of servicemen were recorded in Armenia, and in each case, the Defense Ministry was quick to announce that they were unrelated to military service. Regarding the latest incident, it also complained about the press, demanding that they not affect the troops' morale and psychological state.
Today, on August 26, another death of a serviceman became known. According to Armlur, relatives found his body in a hanged state. The deceased was serving under the "Defend the Fatherland" program and was supposed to leave for his military unit for duty today.
The Defense Ministry immediately responded, stating that the incident occurred at the deceased's place of residence, on a livestock farm, and since the serviceman was not on duty at the time, it had no connection to service and therefore could not be classified as an incident within the army.
At the same time, in its statement, the Ministry complained about press publications, noting that recent materials have an extremely negative impact on the troops' morale and psychological state, and demanded to refrain from targeting the army and from any conduct that causes unnecessary tension.
A day earlier, on August 24, the death of a 37-year-old contract serviceman was reported. His body was found in front of the Sisian military unit, and the preliminary version was suicide. According to "Hraparak," he shot himself in the jaw, but Sputnik Armenia, citing local rumors, reported that the serviceman died inside the unit, in his room. The Ministry also classified this case as unrelated to service, without further comment.
On August 23, the Ministry reported the death of conscript Edgar Gevorgyan, whose body was found with a gunshot wound. The Investigative Committee opened a criminal case on murder charges and arrested the apparent perpetrator, who, as the media later found out, was the deceased's fellow serviceman.
These three cases, which occurred in just three days, reveal the systemic nature of the problem facing the Armenian army. On one hand, the Ministry tries to exclude from statistics every death that occurs outside the unit or outside duty hours. On the other hand, the minister himself admits he does not understand the reasons, while the prime minister explains them as excessive relaxation among soldiers.
It is noteworthy that even in cases of suicide or murder inside a unit—clearly connected to the military environment—the Ministry refuses to consider them "service-related," raising the question of what, then, is generally considered a death related to military service, if not dying from a weapon or suicide in the unit or its immediate vicinity.
