Human rights activist assaulted in Armenia

Human Rights Watch on Thursday called for a more thorough investigation into the case of Mikael Danielian, a prominent Armenian human rights activist who was verbally and physically accosted Wednesday in the streets of Yerevan, the country’s capital.

Danielian, the Chairman of the Armenian Helsinki Association, was assaulted by Tigran Urikhanian, the former leader of the Armenian Progressive Party, when Danielian’s taxi stopped at a red light. After first swearing at him, Urikanian reached into the car window to hit Danielian, and ultimately fired a compressed air gun at him at close range.

Danielian suffered bruises on his chest and neck from the attack, and was treated for a spike in his blood pressure when paramedics arrived on the scene.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) urges the Armenian authorities investigating the incident to take into account Danielian’s human rights work, believing it may have motivated the attack.

For HRW’s full piece, click here.