YEREVAN–(Armenpress)–Unknown assailants desecrated the grave of well-known Armenian writer Raffi (Hagop Melik-Hagopian)–who is buried in Tiblisi’s (Georgia) Khodjavank cemetery.
Georgia’s president Edward Shevardnadze instructed the Tbilisi City Hall and the internal affairs ministry to restore the grave site.
"We enjoy very close relations with Armenia which has existed for centuries and we are very much concerned about any attempt aimed at damaging our friendship," runs Shevardnadze’s statement.
In order to strengthen the relationship that exists between the two countries–Tbilisi’s mayor Zodelava wants to restore the damaged tombstone and to solve other problems concerning the cemetery.
Georgia’s internal affairs minister is to lead an investigation into the vandalism and look into measures to prevent such acts of vandalism to public monumen’s from happening in the future.