Latest news in Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, summary. Live

● Batumelebi and Netgazeti founder Mzia Amaghlobeli will mark her 50th birthday in a detention facility. She was arrested after slapping the Batumi police chief, who she said had insulted her. Amaghlobeli faces up to seven years in prison. Mamuka Khazaradze, leader of the “Lelo – Strong Georgia” party, expressed solidarity, wishing her “strength, health, and freedom—what the regime has unjustly taken from her,” and said the opposition is working to bring international attention to her case and other political prisoners.

● Thousands marched in Tbilisi, ending with a rally outside the U.S. embassy. Demonstrators thanked Washington for decades of support for democracy and for the recently passed MEGOBARI bill in the U.S. Congress. The bill calls for sanctions on senior “Georgian Dream” officials, accusing them of democratic backsliding, media suppression, and aligning with Russia. It must still pass the Senate and be signed by President Trump. Pro-European protests demanding new parliamentary elections and a lawful change of power have continued in Georgia for six months.

● Businessman Giorgi Chikvaidze, sentenced to nine years in prison for fraud, has begun a hunger strike. He denies the charges and claims political persecution. Once a supporter of the ruling “Georgian Dream” party, Chikvaidze had helped in its campaign for last October’s parliamentary elections. In recent months, he accused the government of racketeering and facilitating “business fraud,” warning of threats to his life.

● “Georgian Dream is lying when it accuses the European Union of interfering in domestic affairs,” said Teona Akubardia of the “Gakharia for Georgia” party. “All commitments Georgia made on the path to EU membership, including democratic and judicial reforms, media freedom, and fundamental rights, were signed by this very government. They then violated these obligations and turned against the country’s European future,” she said.

● Authorities in coastal Batumi say they restored power within 24 hours after a hurricane damaged a high-voltage transmission line, leaving part of the city without electricity. Two people were injured by a collapsed construction structure near Piazza Square, but their lives are not in danger.

●  The Patriarchate has announced that May 17 will again be marked with a religious procession and prayer services for the “Day of Family Purity.” The holiday was introduced in 2014 to coincide with the internationally observed International Day Against Homophobia. Last year, the “Georgian Dream” government made May 17 an official public holiday, saying it “shows the world the values on which Georgia and its people stand.”

● Two people have been detained in Tbilisi in connection with a fatal stabbing at a bar. The interior ministry said one suspect is accused of stabbing a 2006-born youth during a dispute. The victim died at the scene. The second detainee allegedly witnessed the killing but failed to report it to police.

● The health condition of Ulviyya Ali, a prominent journalist detained since May 6, has worsened. Her family claims she was beaten during arrest and pre-trial detention, and that she is now suffering from severe headaches and vomiting. Relatives say she urgently needs a medical examination and a CT scan. Authorities have not commented. Ulviyya has been charged with smuggling as part of the “MeydanTV case” along with seven other journalists. All of them deny the charges and say they are being prosecuted for critical reporting on the authorities.

● Azerbaijani opposition politician Tofig Yagublu, who was in critical condition, has ended his hunger strike. A member of the Musavat Party and the National Council, he was sentenced to nine years on fraud charges, which he strongly denies, calling the case politically motivated. He had been on hunger strike for 40 days in protest.

● Ceremonies are being held across Azerbaijan and in Azerbaijani communities abroad to mark the 102nd anniversary of Heydar Aliyev, father of the current president and officially recognized as the country’s “national leader.” Leaders at all levels, including the prime minister, all ministers, and other officials, visited his grave at the Alley of Honor in Baku.

● Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov: “Contacts with Armenia over the peace process are ongoing on several tracks. However, at this stage, there are no serious steps from Armenia toward normalizing relations. Azerbaijan has clear expectations — namely, that Armenia renounce any territorial claims and support the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group, which was co-chaired by France, the United States, and Russia and facilitated negotiations on the Karabakh conflict since the 1990s.”

● Jeyhun Bayramov: “Armenia planted landmines in Karabakh and re-mined large areas during the three years following the Second Karabakh War in 2020. Before Azerbaijan regained control over the Lachin road, Armenia used it to illegally transport mines into Karabakh, despite the trilateral statement stipulating the road was solely for humanitarian purposes. Since November 2020, there have been around 400 mine-related incidents in Azerbaijan’s liberated territories, resulting in the deaths or injuries of around 70 people.”

● Jeyhun Bayramov has departed for an official visit to the Kingdom of Bahrain.

● Turkey and Azerbaijan have conducted joint military exercises in the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan.

● The Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed the ceasefire between India and Pakistan and urged both sides to engage in constructive dialogue.

● A 3,200 kVA substation and a Digital Control Center have been commissioned in the Khojaly district, ensuring a reliable power supply for new residential complexes in the cities and villages of Karabakh, as well as for agricultural, tourism, and other facilities, according to the state agency AZERTAC.

Photo by the Police Academy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Academy cadets held a flash mob dedicated to the 102nd anniversary of the birth of Heydar Aliyev:

● Teachers and parents at the Pushkin School in Yerevan went on strike early this morning, protesting the dismissal of principal Natalia Stepanyan. They are demanding a meeting with the education minister and the city mayor.

●  India will send a second batch of Akash surface-to-air missile systems to Armenia in July, according to the IADN Centre.

● Two passenger planes were delayed from landing at Yerevan airport due to hurricane-force winds. They landed safely once the weather stabilized.

Top stories in Azerbaijan, Armenia, and Georgia from 5-9 May, 2025