Armenia files charges against relatives of Catholicos Garegin II to court

Armenian authorities have referred to court the criminal case against Gevork and Ambartsum Nersisyan — the brother and nephew of Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II — on charges of obstructing an election campaign, according to the Prosecutor General’s Office.

The two were arrested on November 3 and are accused of disrupting campaigning by the pro-Western Republic Party in Vagharshapat (Etchmiadzin) ahead of local elections, Caliber.Az reports per Armenian media.

Investigators say that on November 1, in the village of Voskeha in the Ashtarak Municipality, the Nersisyans confronted and insulted a party activist who was distributing campaign leaflets.

Their detention on near the Armenian Apostolic Church’s Mother See followed allegations by Republic Party candidate Harutyun Mkrtchyan, who claimed on social media that the Catholicos’s relatives interfered with pre-election activities.

The case comes amid a series of recent detentions involving figures linked to the Armenian Apostolic Church, deepening a year-long confrontation between the church leadership and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government.

By Sabina Mammadli