The Armenian government issued a call this week to continue hunting and killing of wolves after increasing reports of attacks on rural villages across the country.

Wolves are being killed since January 2009, by the order of the Ministry of Nature Protection, which says there are several hundred wolves in the country and they are not on the list of endangered species. Instead, the ministry says, the increase of wolf population causes harm to animals which are registered in the Red Book, or, to domestic animals.

Rewards for the killed wolf remains the same AMD100,000 (around $250), but the ministry offers to double the amount.

The government is planning to allocate AMD 2 million ($25,000) from the reserve fund for the wolf hunt program.