Armenian president chairs meeting on hostage crisis in Yerevan

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan has held a meeting of top national security officials. As the presidential press office reports, they briefed Sargsyan on the hostage crisis at a police station in Erebuni, Yerevan, and on the measures taken to solve it.

They stressed that the security services are fully controlling the situation and taking all necessary measures.

As EADaily reported earlier, the attack at the police station in Erebuni was carried out by members of the non-system opposition organization called Founding Parliament. Spokesman for the organization Varuzhan Avetisyan said it was a military coup. He announced they were urging change of power in Armenia and release of their leader Jirair Sefilyan who was detained under suspicion of arms trafficking.

Valery Osipyan, Deputy Head of Yerevan City Police, and Deputy Head of Armenian Police Vardan Yeghiazaryan are still hostages.

The situation at the scene remains tense, additional forces and special vehicles are pulled to the police station. All streets leading to the building are cordoned off, but the police forces do not make new attempts to release remaining hostages and detain the attackers.

Previously, one police officer was killed, two wounded during a special police operation to release the hostages kept at the police station. According to the National Security Service of Armenia, two hostages are freed.