On 17 July 2016, a group of armed men calling themselves the Daredevils of Sasun (Armenian: Սասնա Ծռեր, romanized: Sasna Tsṙer; the name is taken from an epic poem) stormed a police station in Yerevan, Armenia and took nine hostages.
The group began a standoff with government forces with growing crowds of protesters joining the calls for the resignation of the president.
The Lebanese-born ethnic Armenian Jirair Sefilian led opposing forces under the formation New Armenia Public Salvation Front.
According to the Armenian Special Investigation Service, Sefilian and a group of people planned to seize buildings and communication facilities, including the Yerevan TV tower.
[5] Varuzhan Avetisian, a future Sasna Tsrer member, claimed that the opposition leader was arrested because he planned to campaign against Armenian territorial concessions to Azerbaijan.
[6] Tensions in the country have also been running high over Russian mediation attempts following the aftermath of the 2016 Armenian–Azerbaijani clashes, with the Kremlin suggesting to give some land back to Azerbaijan and in turn allow the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic to receive international recognition.
The attackers demanded the resignation of President Serzh Sargsyan, the release of Jirair Sefilian, and the calling of snap parliamentary and presidential elections and the formation of a new government.
[8] Future director of the National Security Service of Armenia, Artur Vanetsyan, then working in the counterintelligence division of the NSS, was also involved in the negotiations with the gunmen.
[10] On 22 July, President Serzh Sargsyan addressed the nation and said, "I urge the armed people, who have occupied the territory of the police headquarters, to show restraint and not endanger the lives of others with their reckless moves.
[11] The same day, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Supreme Body of Armenia condemned the acts of Sasna Tsrer by stating, "The A.R.F.-Dashnaktsutyun seeks the settlement of the current situation exclusively by peaceful means, considers new bloodshed as unacceptable, demands professionalism from law enforcing agencies, demands that the rights and dignity of law-abiding citizens be respected, and strongly condemns non-political methods and extremist thinking.
During negotiations, Armenian law enforcement allowed Sasna Tsrer to speak with journalists in a designated neutral zone around the occupied police station.
[8][15] On 27 July, 4 medics were allowed to enter the police station to treat Arayik Khandoyan, one of the armed men who was wounded in the leg but refused to go to the hospital.
[23] Several political activists were arrested including Alexander Yenikomshian, Armen Martirosyan, Andrias Ghukasyan, David Sanasaryan.
Future prime minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan, then an opposition parliamentarian, also participated in the protests and went to the occupied police station to speak to the members of Sasna Tsrer on the first day of the hostage crisis.
[8] The Armenian interior ministry stated 51 people were injured during protests on July 21, 28 of whom were police officers due to stone throwing from protestors.
[33] On 16 March 2017, Arthur Sargsyan, also known as the “Bread bringer”, who brought food to the Sasna Tsrer armed group, died in prison.
The Chief of Yerevan Police, Lieutenant General Ashot Karapetyan, also received a strict warning and was relieved of his duties on 8 August.
[8] Sasna Tsrer member Smbat Barseghyan was charged with the murder of police officers Yuri Tepanosyan and Artur Vanoyan.
[8] In September 2018, Sefilian and his political supporters, including many of the participants in the 2016 attack, founded the Sasna Tsrer Pan-Armenian Party.
"[43] According to Human Rights Watch, Armenian police used excessive force against peaceful protesters on 29 July 2016, and assaulted journalists reporting on the demonstrations.