Armenian church leader’s relatives placed under house arrest

The Armavir Regional Court has placed the brother and nephew of Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II — Gevorg Nersisyan and Ambartsum Nersisyan — under house arrest.

Judge Gevorg Manukyan issued the ruling, replacing their previous detention with a three-month house arrest, a bail of 1 million drams (approximately $2,500), and a binding pledge not to leave the country, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media.

The Nersisyans were initially detained on November 3, 2025, facing charges of obstructing the pre-election campaign of the pro-Western Republic party during the Vagharshapat elections. Investigators report that on November 1 in the village of Voskehat, within the enlarged Vagharshapat community, the two allegedly engaged in a confrontation and insulted a party representative distributing campaign materials. The case was formally submitted to the court on November 17.

Their arrest occurs against the backdrop of escalating tensions between the Armenian state and the Armenian Apostolic Church. The dispute intensified following sharp criticisms of the higher clergy by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on social media. Subsequently, the Prime Minister proposed reforms to the election process of the Catholicos of All Armenians, granting the state a central role, and indicated his intention to personally lead efforts to replace the Church leader.

By Vafa Guliyeva