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Protesters blocked roads in Armenia's capital. This little boy used his toy cars

The little boy holds open his arms as he stands, satisfied, in front of a rainbow-colored line of toy cars he's placed in the middle of a street.

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Gianluca Mezzofiore (CNN)
(CNN) — The little boy holds open his arms as he stands, satisfied, in front of a rainbow-colored line of toy cars he's placed in the middle of a street.

The photo, shot in the Armenian capital of Yerevan, captures the overwhelmingly peaceful protests taking place in the former Soviet republic after parliament refused to elect opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan as the new prime minister.

Thousands of demonstrators blocked roads and danced in the streets of Yerevan on Wednesday heeding their protest leader's call for a nationwide day of action.

The boy, whose identity is unknown, wanted to emulate his parents who, like many others, had taken part to the street blockade, said the photographer Milena Pogosova.

"He was very kind and told me that he put the small cars on the street by himself because the adults around him were doing the same," Pogosova told CNN.

Around 30 people and five cars were blocking access to Victory Bridge, where the photo was shot. The brdge is close to the main protest site, Pogosova said.

Protesters also blocked roads to government buildings, including the Ministry of Defense, demonstrator Marina Gasparyan told CNN.

"I'd say 96% of Yerevan streets are blocked by protesters. Streets are closed mainly by cars," Gasparyan said, adding that many protesters were communicating using the messaging app Telegram.

The protests appeared to be largely peaceful, with local residents giving out strawberries and water to demonstrators, Gasparyan said.

Pashinyan, a former journalist and leader of the opposition Civil Contract party, will face a second round of parliamentary votes next week.

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