Mass searches of Dashnaks' homes underway in Armenia

Armenian law enforcers are conducting searches in the homes of ARF (Armenian Revolutionary Federation) Dashnaktsutyun representatives in Armenia.

The announcement came from Kristine Vardanyan, an MP from former President Robert Kocharyan's “Armenia” bloc, told Armenian media outlets, Caliber.Az reports.

"Since early morning, searches have been conducted in the homes of several ARFD members in Ararat region and Yerevan. There is currently no information about the detainees, but according to our assessment, this is another illegal action with political goals," she said.

Vardanyan added that some of the faction’s MPs are heading to Ararat.

In turn, Benik Galstyan, the lawyer of AFRD activist Gerasim Vardanyan, noted that his client's house in Artashat is also being searched.

"He has also been summoned for interrogation. It is not clear to us in the framework of which case he has been summoned", Galstyan said.

Gerasim Vardanyan has been released on bail. He is accused of organizing mass riots during the events of November 10, 2020, when groups of citizens stormed the building of the Armenian government and parliament, protesting against the signing of a trilateral statement on Karabakh. The activist is also charged with obstructing a journalist’s activity. He was detained at the time but was soon released.

Vardanyan was arrested just after the protests began in Yerevan in May 2022.