The Ministry of Emergency Situations announced yesterday that it will form the residents of border villages in northern Armenia to better guard against the Azeri and shots to 
prevent them from accidentally crossing the border.
Armen Yeritsian said the ministry launched during special defense for 21 rural communities in the province of Tavush following the recent upsurge in fighting on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border and around Nagorno-Karabakh. He said that the Armenian army, whose troops are stationed along the border, supported the idea.
“The villagers lived under fire for a long time, but we have experts who will go out to them and tell them what to do in times like these,” said Yeritsian.
He said department staff will also publish details of these villages and the surrounding areas to prevent accidental crossing of the border of Azerbaijan by local residents cards. “We need to conduct explanatory work and tell them where they can go and where they can not,” said he added.
A resident of one of the border villages Chinari, has died at the age of 33 on Aug. 8, the day after his arrest in Azerbaijan by the military authorities. The Armenian government and many Chinari believe Karen Petrossian was murdered or beaten to death.
At 77, a resident of another village in Tavush, Verin Karmiraghbyur, died last May, three months after being detained by Azerbaijani in similar circumstances.
Sarkisian urged August 10 villagers of the border to be more cautious in their movements. “The people of our border villages must realize they are dealing with a furious and savage enemy,” he has said.
A politician of the Armenian opposition announced yesterday that the six main political parties of the country represented in Parliament have agreed to jointly Tavush visit this weekend. Ruben Hakobyan, head of the parliamentary group of the opposition Zharangutyun, said they will propose this week a joint draft legislation that would, drinking water and other public services to the affected communities free electricity.
“These border communities need to have privileges because, basically, they are also soldiers, they defend the border,” said Hakobyan.