The Victims of March 1, 2008

On Mar. 1–2, 2008, national police and military forces, called in to disperse mass protests against electoral fraud by supporters of unsuccessful presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrossian, used “excessive force and violence” that left 10 people dead — 2 police officers and 8 civilians — and many more wounded on the streets of central Yerevan. 

To this day, the murders are unsolved and no one has been held accountable for these crimes.

Here are the victims, whose memory we honor today:

Gor Qloyan (or Kloyan) died on Mar. 1 from shrapnel wounds. Metal pieces were removed from his body. According to the official report, the cause of death was wounds from a Cheryomukha explosive.

Davit Petrosyan died from a gunshot wound to his chest from behind.

Tigran Abgaryan served in the special police forces. He was wounded on Mar. 1, 2008, fell into a coma for 41 days, and died on Apr. 10, 2008.

Tigran Khachatryan died on Mar. 1 from an open craniocerebral injury. A foreign body — a piece of metal — was removed from the cranial cavity. The cause of death was from a Cheryomukha type of explosive.

Armen Farmanyan died from an open head injury; a foreign body was removed from his skull. According to the official report, the cause of death was from a Cheryomukha explosive.

Hovhannes Hovhannisyan died from a gunshot wound at the top of the bridge at the intersection of Mesrop Mashtots Avenue and Grigor Lusavorich Street.

Hamlet Tadevosyan, a police captain, was injured from a cluster bomb of exploding bomb fragments. The incident occurred at 9:18 pm on Mar. 1, but he was taken to a clinic and died at 3:30 am on Mar. 2. Posthumously awarded the rank of major.

Grigor Gevorgyan died at 9:30 pm on Mar. 1 at the intersection of Leo and Paronian streets from a sniper shot.

Samvel Harutyunyan was fatally injured in an underground pedestrian tunnel, from a shot fired from a Kalashnikov AKS rifle.

Zakar Hovhannisyan died at 1:30 am on Mar. 2 outside the Covered Market on Mesrop Mashtots Avenue, from a shot fired from a Makarov pistol.