Prosecutor to Examine Leaked Recording Attributed to Catholicos

The recording of the telephone conversation circulating on the Internet will be subject to examination within the framework of the proceedings. This was reported to ReOpen by the Prosecutor General's Office. Earlier, a recording was circulated on the Internet, attributed to a telephone conversation between Archbishop Nathan and Father Aghan Yernjakyan, the former staff-bearer of the Catholicos.

According to Aghan Yernjakyan, His Holiness forced him and his family to participate in rallies against Nikol Pashinyan, and when he refused, difficulties were created for him in his service. In the circulated recording, in particular, one of the two alleged clergymen notes: "The Catholicos tells me, why don't you take your family and go protest against Nikol..." The clergymen also discuss the issue of being appointed far from home: "They are appointing me 200 km away from my home. If I knew that this would save the Armenian Church, I would gladly go 2000 km, but if I have to leave my mother and family and go live in Vanadzor just because one person wants it that way and wants discomfort in my life, I do not accept that discomfort in my life."

The Mother See has issued a statement regarding the scandalous recording of the telephone conversation circulating on the Internet. "In the context of the actions unleashed by the authorities against the church, including the detention of dozens of clergymen in recent days and the imprisonment of two church members, it is already obvious who is behind this latest act. These days, the entire law enforcement and judicial system is engaged in the implementation of illegal anti-church instructions.

The purpose of circulating such expressions attributed to the Catholicos of All Armenians is to discredit and incite hostility towards the Church and clergymen," wrote the Mother See, reminding that the violation of the secrecy of telephone conversations is in itself a crime and a separate topic. They expressed hope that the law enforcement bodies will give an adequate response.