Armenian court extends detention of opposition leader Tevanyan

A court in Armenia has extended the pre-trial detention of Andranik Tevanyan, leader of the “Mother Armenia” opposition party, by two months, his lawyer said.

According to Armenia’s Investigative Committee of Armenia, Tevanyan is accused of being recruited by foreign intelligence services in 2024 while serving as a member of parliament and of engaging in agent activity.

Investigators allege that he unlawfully obtained detailed information from a closed parliamentary discussion held in April that year and passed the material — translated into Russian and classified as a state secret — in exchange for $622,000.

A criminal case has been opened in connection with the allegations.

The Investigative Committee announced the case on May 21, a day after Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at an election rally that the country’s National Security Service would submit a report to investigators regarding a suspected offence linked to Tevanyan.

By Tamilla Hasanova