Affiliated media: Hetq.am, Online media outlet

Incident date: September 15, 2025

Attack type:

• Defamation, spreading libel about a media worker or media outlet

Who attacked: Authorities

Source: Azatutyun TV

Location: Armenia, Yerevan

Additional information:

On 15 September, at his press conference, Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan spoke in an extremely irritable tone, levelling serious accusations against the media — large-scale corruption, the circulation of shadow money, and commissioned articles. Even the investigative journalism online outlet Hetq (Hetq.am) was not spared these accusations, despite the fact that its many years of work have proven its incorruptibility and earned it a reputation as an objective, high-quality media outlet. Addressing media representatives, Avinyan added: “The most corrupt media accuse uncorrupt people of corruption… Please take offence — I want to insult you.”