Armenian official criticises detained opposition figures

Deputy Speaker of the Armenian Parliament Ruben Rubinyan, a member of the ruling Civil Contract party, has commented on the detention of opposition figures accused of insulting Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan.

Rubinyan addressed the incident in a post on his Facebook page, responding sarcastically about the arrests, Caliber.Az reports. 

“It’s just like 1937 — they won’t let a person freely threaten others with physical violence and insult their mothers,” he wrote. 

The comment came after security forces detained Narek Samsonyan and Vazgen Saghatelyan, hosts of the Imnemnimi podcast, known for its anti-governmental remarks, on the morning of November 13. Their homes were searched, and both men were taken to the Investigative Committee. Authorities announced that a criminal case had been opened on charges of hooliganism. According to their lawyer, Ruben Melikyan, the arrests were connected to a complaint filed by Speaker Simonyan regarding insults directed at him.

By Sabina Mammadli