On July 13, lawyer Rafael Martirosyan stated that Vitaly Balasanyan, the former de-facto Secretary of the Security Council of the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh, had been arrested. 

He did not specify in what case and on what charges the arrest was made, only pointing out that Balasanyan had many injuries on his body. "Apparently, they were the result of the forcible detention of the ex-secretary of the Karabakh Security Council," he added. Later, Armenian media reported that Balasanyan was charged with abuse of official powers. 

It is noteworthy that Balasanyan's arrest coincided with internal political tensions in Karabakh against the background of Azerbaijan's closure of the Lachin corridor. Previously, Balasanyan was considered one of Nagorny Karabakh's key figures in negotiations with Azerbaijan. Vitaly Balasanyan is also known as a harsh critic of Nikol Pashinyan's government. 

Notably, a few months ago, it was reported that the law enforcement agencies of the unrecognized republic opened criminal cases against several officials, including Vitaly Balasanyan.