In a significant escalation of tensions between the Armenian government and the influential Armenian Apostolic Church, Bishop Mkrtich Proshyan has been charged with coercing citizens into participating in public gatherings, as well as allegations of large-scale theft and obstruction of electoral rights. The charges, announced by Armenia’s Investigative Committee on Wednesday, mark the latest in a series of high-profile arrests targeting critics of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. Proshyan, who is the nephew of the church’s leader, Catholicos Karekin II, was detained alongside twelve other clergymen from his diocese. The church has condemned the arrests as part of a systematic campaign to undermine its activities, stating on social media that there is ‘obvious malicious intent to hinder the normal activities of the church.’ The investigation into Proshyan began in September following accusations from a clergy member that the church pressured its members to join anti-government rallies in 2021. This arrest follows the sentencing of Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan to two years in prison in June for allegedly calling for the government’s overthrow. Relations between Pashinyan and the church have deteriorated sharply since April 2024, when tens of thousands of demonstrators protested Armenia’s decision to cede control of several border villages to Azerbaijan as part of a broader effort to normalize relations. The church, along with opposition groups like Sacred Struggle, has vehemently opposed these territorial concessions, which have become a focal point of broader grievances against Pashinyan’s administration. The ongoing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, rooted in territorial disputes since the early 1990s, has further complicated the political landscape. In September 2023, Azerbaijan reclaimed full control of the Karabakh region, leading to Armenia’s subsequent handover of border villages. A White House-brokered peace deal signed in August aimed to end decades of conflict, but internal tensions in Armenia continue to simmer.
Leading bishop among Armenian clerics arrested in government crackdown on church
