Armenian ombudswoman orders investigation after search of opposition MP’s home

Armenian Human Rights Defender Anahit Manasyan has ordered an investigation following searches conducted at the residence of opposition lawmaker Gegham Manukyan, during which his phone was confiscated, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media.

The press service of the Human Rights Defender’s office, law enforcement officers conducted the search in the early morning of July 10. Alongside seizing Manukyan’s phone, authorities also detained his son.

The Defender’s office received information that a group of individuals, including Manukyan’s son, had been taken to the investigative department of Yerevan. However, lawyers were denied access to the building and were unable to meet with the detainees.

“A rapid response team has been dispatched to the investigative department,” the statement said.

Ombudswoman Manasyan has taken the situation under her personal supervision.

The searches follow a pattern of escalating tensions between Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government and opposition figures, particularly those associated with the ARF Dashnaktsutyun and the “Armenia” faction. On July 7–8, the Armenian parliament, dominated by Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party, voted to strip three opposition MPs—Artur Sargsyan, Seyran Ohanyan, and Artsvik Minasyan—of their parliamentary immunity, citing allegations of coup plotting and corruption.

Sargsyan was detained after a violent brawl erupted in parliament, while Ohanyan and Minasyan face charges related to a land acquisition scheme from 2008–2016. These actions have been widely criticized as political repression aimed at silencing dissent.

By Khagan Isayev