Latest news with #Sargsyan
Indian Express
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
WATCH: Violent brawl erupts in Armenian parliament during session as govt cracks down on political opponents
Armenia's National Assembly witnessed a brawl on Tuesday involving an opposition lawmaker, who called for ousting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan as political tensions flared in the country and the accused lawmaker was later stripped of his parliamentary immunity and faces prosecution. Lawmaker Artur Sargsyan, who represents opposition bloc Armenia, finished a speech wherein he alleged that a case had been decided against him 'ahead of time' and he tried to leave the chamber after his speech completion. It was then that other lawmakers tried to block him and security guards rushed in to intervene, Associated Press reported quoting videos from news outlets. Chaos erupts in Armenian Parliament as MPs brawl over stripping opposition MP Artur Sargsyan's immunity. Sargsyan is accused of plotting terrorism and power seizure with the 'Sacred Struggle' movement, led by arrested Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan. — Polymarket Intel (@PolymarketIntel) July 8, 2025 Lawmaker Sargsyan, in his speech in the National Assembly, stated 'Armenia had become a bastion of dictatorship where everything is decided in advance, written down, approved.' Taking action against Sargsyan, the lawmakers in the National Assembly voted to strip him of his parliamentary immunity, which opened him up to prosecution. Sargsyan appeared before Armenia's Investigative Committee which has accused him and 15 others of plotting to overthrow the incumbent government. Meanwhile, Armenia's Prime Minister Pashinyan has been cracking down on the political opponents which he said are trying to plot a political coup against his dispensation. Since Pashinyan agreed to territorial concessions with neighboring Azerbaijan to bring a pause in the country's decades-long battle for control of disputed regions, several opposition members, including the influential Armenian Apostolic Church, have been leading demonstrations against the government demanding Pashinyan's resignation. A report by Associated Press stated that senior church leaders Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan and Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan are in pre-trial detention after being accused of taking part in the alleged plot to overthrow the government. (with inputs from Associated Press)
India Today
08-07-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Watch: Violent clash in Armenian parliament as government targets opposition
A violent brawl broke out on Tuesday inside Armenia's National Assembly, involving opposition lawmaker Artur Sargsyan. The incident occurred amid rising tensions in the country. After the brawl, lawmakers voted to strip Sargsyan of his parliamentary immunity, paving the way for charges against him over his calls to oust President Nikol Sargsyan, a member of the opposition bloc Armenia, had just finished a speech when the fight started. In his speech, he said the case against him was decided before any trial and called Armenia "a bastion of dictatorship" where "everything is decided in advance, written down, approved." After his speech, when he tried to leave, other lawmakers blocked him, and security guards rushed in, as videos from news outlets lawmakers voted to remove Sargsyan's immunity. Without this protection, he could be prosecuted. He turned himself in to Armenia's Investigative Committee, which accused him and 15 others of planning to overthrow the government. President Pashinyan's government says it is acting to stop a coup attempt. CHURCH LEADERS ARRESTED The political crisis in Armenia has deepened after several opposition members, including leaders of the Armenian Apostolic Church, have been arrested. Important church figures -- Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan and Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan -- are in pre-trial detention on charges of being involved in the alleged coup June 28, many supporters gathered outside the church headquarters near the capital, Yerevan, to stop Ajapahyan's arrest. He later turned himself in. The Investigative Committee claims that the plotters planned bombings, arson, and accidents on main roads to cause chaos. Both church leaders deny these and Galstanyan are members of the opposition group Sacred Struggle, which led major protests against Pashinyan last year. Initially focused on territorial losses, the movement has since expanded to broader government criticisms, fuelling tensions between the president and the Armenian Apostolic government has also targeted other critics. On Monday, police raided a large energy company owned by Samvel Karapetyan, a Russian-Armenian billionaire who has spoken against Pashinyan. Parliament passed a law on July 3 that allows the government to nationalise this company. Karapetyan was arrested shortly before this law was approved, after calling for the government's WITH AZERBAIJANArmenia's political unrest is connected to its ongoing conflict with neighbouring Azerbaijan. Since the early 1990s, the two countries have fought over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. When the Soviet Union broke apart in 1991, Armenian-backed forces took control of Karabakh and surrounding areas inside 2020, Azerbaijan recaptured large parts of this territory after almost 30 years. A quick military campaign in September 2023 gave Azerbaijan full control over Karabakh. Armenia also handed over several border villages to Azerbaijan.- EndsTrending Reel
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Armenia charges two top opposition politicians, readies indictment against another
By Lucy Papachristou (Reuters) -Authorities in Armenia indicted two senior politicians from a pro-Russian opposition coalition for corruption-related crimes on Tuesday, as prosecutors prepared to file charges against another MP. Opposition groups have decried the criminal investigation against the politicians - Seyran Ohanyan, Artsvik Minasyan and Artur Sargsyan - as politically motivated. The three are members of Armenia Alliance, a parliamentary group led by Robert Kocharyan, who served as the South Caucasus country's president from 1998 to 2008. Led by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Armenia has moved closer to the West, signalling that it wants to join the European Union and distancing itself from traditional ally Russia. But Pashinyan, who swept to power during street protests in 2018, has entered into a bitter confrontation in recent months with senior religious figures as well as a top businessman and a former political rival as he faces parliamentary elections next year. Armenian prosecutors say Ohanyan and Minasyan participated in a scheme to in which the former, then the country's defence minister, acquired a plot of land belonging to a nature reserve and built a house there. Minasyan, a former environment minister, gave his assent to the sale, investigators say. Ohanyan, the parliamentary leader for Armenia Alliance, was charged with abuse of power, money laundering, bribery and other crimes on Tuesday, Armenpress state news agency reported. The faction's secretary, Minasyan, was charged with abuse of power. Both deny wrongdoing. Prosecutors say the third Armenia Alliance MP, Sargsyan, participated in an attempted coup plot allegedly orchestrated by a prominent Christian cleric last month. The cleric, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, is currently in detention. Sargsyan has denied involvement, according to Armenpress. Parliament on Tuesday gave prosecutors a green light to indict Sargsyan, after earlier stripping him and the two others of their parliamentary immunity.
08-07-2025
- Politics
Armenian lawmakers brawl as the government cracks down on its political opponents
YEREVAN, Armenia -- A brawl broke out Tuesday in Armenia's National Assembly involving an opposition lawmaker who later was stripped of his parliamentary immunity and faces prosecution for calling for ousting President Nikol Pashinyan as political tensions flared in the South Caucasus country. Artur Sargsyan, who represents the opposition bloc Armenia, had finished a speech in which he said the case against him had been decided ahead of time and tried to leave the chamber. Other lawmakers then moved to stop him, and security guards flooded in, according to video from news outlets. In his speech, Sargsyan said Armenia had become 'a bastion of dictatorship' where "everything is decided in advance, written down, approved.' Lawmakers later voted to strip Sargsyan of his parliamentary immunity, opening him up to prosecution. He turned himself in to Armenia's Investigative Committee, which had accused him and 15 others of plotting to overthrow the government. Pashinyan's government has been cracking down on political opponents he has said are trying to engineer a coup. Various members of the opposition, including the influential Armenian Apostolic Church, have been leading demonstrations urging Pashinyan's ouster after he agreed to territorial concessions in the country's decades-long battle with neighboring Azerbaijan for control of disputed regions. Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan and Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, both senior church leaders, are in pre-trial detention after being accused of taking part in the alleged plot. On June 28, crowds of supporters gathered at church headquarters outside the capital of Yerevan to prevent Ajapahyan's arrest. He later turned himself in to the authorities. The Investigative Committee said conspirators planned to carry out bombings and arson to disrupt power supplies and stage accidents on major roads to paralyze traffic. Both men rejected the charges against them. Ajapahyan and Galstanyan are members of the opposition group Sacred Struggle, which took a central role in anti-Pashinyan demonstrations last year. Although the territorial concessions were the movement's core issue, it has expanded to a wide array of complaints about Pashinyan, who came to power in 2018. It has also sparked increasing friction between the president and the church in recent weeks. In a social media post Monday, Pashinyan said he would liberate the Armenian Apostolic Church from its 'anti-Christian, adulterous, anti-national, anti-state' leadership. Police on Monday raided one of the country's major energy providers, which is owned by another Pashinyan critic, Russian-Armenian billionaire Samvel Karapetyan. Parliament adopted a law allowing for nationalizing the company on July 3, days after Karapetyan was arrested for calling for the ouster of the government. The raid began in the morning and it was unclear which branch of the government or security services was carrying it out, said company spokesperson Natalya Sarjanyan. 'We do not know which department these people are from, but we are not allowed into the office,' she said. Armenia and Azerbaijan were locked in territorial disputes since the early 1990s, as various parts of the Soviet Union pressed for independence from Moscow. After the USSR collapsed in 1991, ethnic Armenian separatist forces backed by the Armenian military won control of Azerbaijan's region of Karabakh and nearby territories. In 2020, Azerbaijan recaptured broad swaths of territory that were held for nearly three decades by Armenian forces. A swift military campaign in September 2023 saw Azerbaijan gain full control of Karabakh, and Armenia later handed over the border villages.
NDTV
08-07-2025
- Politics
- NDTV
Brawl Erupts In Armenian Parliament As Government Cracks Down On Opponents
A heated parliamentary session in Armenia spiralled into chaos on Tuesday when a scuffle broke out between lawmakers and security personnel. The clash erupted after opposition MP Artur Sargsyan, who represents bloc Armenia, attempted to leave the chamber following his speech, triggering a confrontation. "I will voluntarily go to the Investigative Committee," he said. This comes as Sargsyan faces prosecution for calling for ousting President Nikol Pashinyan as political tensions flared in the South Caucasus country. Kristine Vardanyan, another opposition MP, claimed Sargsyan was attacked from behind by Vahe Galumyan, a lawmaker from the ruling Civil Contract party, while other lawmakers from the ruling party began to shout from their seats, after which they got up and attacked Sargsyan with their fists and also used slang expressions. This's a video of a #fight btw pro-govt & opposition MPs in the #Armenia |n parliament. A MP from the ruling team, which zealously advocates reconciliation with #Turkey, suddenly called his opponent the Turk's son. They should decide whether this's a swear word or a compliment. — Karina Karapetyan (@KarinaKarapety8) July 8, 2025 The confrontation unfolded during a tense debate over stripping Sargsyan of parliamentary immunity. Armenian authorities have accused him of involvement in planning an armed coup, an allegation he firmly denies. In his speech, Sargsyan said Armenia had become "a bastion of dictatorship" where "everything is decided in advance, written down, approved." The incident underscores growing political tensions in Yerevan. Pashinyan's government has been cracking down on political opponents he has said are trying to engineer a coup. In a social media post Monday, Pashinyan said he would liberate the Armenian Apostolic Church from its "anti-Christian, adulterous, anti-national, anti-state" leadership. Later in the session, the National Assembly voted to revoke parliamentary immunity for two key opposition figures: Seyran Ohanyan, leader of the "Armenia" faction and a former defence minister, and faction secretary Artsvik Minasyan. The vote also cleared the way for criminal proceedings against both. A decision on whether to strip Sargsyan of immunity and authorise his detention was still pending as the special session continued. In contrast, no such detention motions were introduced for either Ohanyan or Minasyan. As the National Assembly deputy speaker Ruben Rubinyan could not control the session, he declared a recess.
