Latest news with #ArmenianChurch
Metro
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Metro
Armenia's prime minister offers to show his penis to the head of the church
The prime minister of Armenia has vowed to prove his faith by dropping his trousers to the head of the church. Nikol Pashinyan was challenged to 'prove' his member is uncircumcised in a bitter feud played out over social media. An Armenian priest accused Pashinyan of being snipped on Monday, implying he was not Christian in the deeply religious west Asian country. The priest, Father Zareh Ashuryan, said: 'I believe that our Apostolic Holy Church must immediately cleanse itself of those false 'believers' who are traitors to the nation, have dishonoured the memory of their ancestors, broken the vow of baptism, and replaced the seal of the Holy Cross with the sign of circumcision'. This enraged the country's leader, who shot back with a fiery Facebook post on Tuesday, suggesting he'd be willing to show his penis to the Church's supreme leader Karekin II. He addressed Karekin II by his birth name Ktrij Nersisyan, saying he was 'ready to accept Ktrij Nersisyan and his spokesperson [father Ashuryan] and prove the opposite' about being circumcised. Pashinyan also shot back at the church's leader, asking: 'And let him finally answer the question of whether he has broken his vow of celibacy or not. Does he have a child or not?' The extraordinary war of words comes as tensions rocket between Armenia's PM and the powerful clergy. In late May, Pashinyan claimed that churches had become 'storerooms' and that priests were breaking their celibacy vows, according to OC Media. The Armenian Church responded, saying Pashinyan's language was 'unbecoming of a statesman'. They added: 'Political motives drive this anti-Church and represent an attempt to erode the standing of the Armenian Church and its clergy.' On Wednesday, Pashinyan posted saying law enforcement had prevented a large and sinister plan by the 'criminal oligarchic clergy' to 'destabilise the Republic'. Pashinyan has been Prime Minister of Armenia since 2018 as head of the Civil Contract party. The party gained over 50% of the vote in 2021 election but faced allegations of fraud from the opposition. Karekin II served as a bishop and Archbishop before being elected the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church since 1999. check our news page.
Metro
a day ago
- Politics
- Metro
Armenian PM make bizarre vow to 'prove' something about his penis
The prime minister of Armenia has vowed to prove his faith by dropping his trousers to the head of the church. Nikol Pashinyan was challenged to 'prove' his member is uncircumcised in a bitter feud played out over social media. An Armenian priest accused Pashinyan of being snipped on Monday, implying he was not Christian in the deeply religious west Asian country. The priest, Father Zareh Ashuryan, said: 'I believe that our Apostolic Holy Church must immediately cleanse itself of those false 'believers' who are traitors to the nation, have dishonoured the memory of their ancestors, broken the vow of baptism, and replaced the seal of the Holy Cross with the sign of circumcision'. This enraged the country's leader, who shot back with a fiery Facebook post on Tuesday, suggesting he'd be willing to show his penis to the Church's supreme leader Karekin II. He addressed Karekin II by his birth name Ktrij Nersisyan, saying he was 'ready to accept Ktrij Nersisyan and his spokesperson [father Ashuryan] and prove the opposite' about being circumcised. Pashinyan also shot back at the church's leader, asking: 'And let him finally answer the question of whether he has broken his vow of celibacy or not. Does he have a child or not?' The extraordinary war of words comes as tensions rocket between Armenia's PM and the powerful clergy. In late May, Pashinyan claimed that churches had become 'storerooms' and that priests were breaking their celibacy vows, according to OC Media. The Armenian Church responded, saying Pashinyan's language was 'unbecoming of a statesman'. They added: 'Political motives drive this anti-Church and represent an attempt to erode the standing of the Armenian Church and its clergy.' More Trending On Wednesday, Pashinyan posted saying law enforcement had prevented a large and sinister plan by the 'criminal oligarchic clergy' to 'destabilise the Republic'. Pashinyan has been Prime Minister of Armenia since 2018 as head of the Civil Contract party. The party gained over 50% of the vote in 2021 election but faced allegations of fraud from the opposition. Karekin II served as a bishop and Archbishop before being elected the supreme head of the Armenian Apostolic Church since 1999. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: 'Burglar' gets stuck in chimney trying to rescue his trapped dog MORE: Inside New York's 'Pigeon Fest' where impersonators battle for title MORE: Man 'urinates on $10,000 worth of Spam and sausages forcing them to be tossed'
Russia Today
6 days ago
- Politics
- Russia Today
Moscow closely following arrest of Russian-Armenian billionaire
Moscow is closely monitoring the legal case against businessman Samvel Karapetyan, who was arrested in Armenia earlier this week, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said. The billionaire holds both Russian and Armenian citizenship. Karapetyan has been accused of calling for the overthrow of the Armenian government and is being held in pre-trial detention for two months. He has denied all the charges, while his supporters claim the case against him is politically motivated. 'Of course we're watching. For us, he is a Russian citizen. We do not want to interfere in the internal affairs of Armenia, but we most carefully follow everything that is related to Russian citizens,' Peskov told reporters on Friday. Karapetyan was taken into custody on Tuesday hours after he voiced his support for the Armenian Apostolic Church in its standoff with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. 'I have always been on the side of the Armenian Church and the Armenian people. If the politicians fail, we will intervene in the campaign against the Church in our own way,' he said. Shortly after the billionaire's remarks, Pashinyan took to Facebook vowing to retaliate and shut down the businessman's operations in the country 'for good.' Just a few hours later, Karapetyan's residence in Yerevan was raided by police. The case against Karapetyan has received condemnation from different figures in the Armenian diaspora and the Orthodox community. 'From the information we have, the arrest is likely related to the escalation of the conflict between the church and the government of Armenia… Freedom of speech is sacred, and persecution of a person for personal views is unacceptable unless martial law is declared,' Vikan Tosunyan, a spokesman for Lebanon's Armenian Democratic Liberal Party, told Sputnik Arabic. The arrest of Karapetyan is a part of a broader attack on Eastern Christianity, renowned Serbian filmmaker Emir Kusturica has suggested, drawing parallels between the actions of Pashinyan and politicians in other countries. '[Vladimir] Zelensky is doing this in Ukraine, they tried to do this in Montenegro, but the people there rose up, and Belgrade was able to defend the church, so we can only believe that we, the Orthodox, have protection and seek it in our brotherly Russia,' Kusturica told RIA Novosti. In recent weeks, Pashinyan has repeatedly attacked the church, accusing it of various violations and corruption, as well as personally targeting Catholicos Garegin II, the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, claiming he had breached his vow of celibacy and urging him to step down. The church has firmly rejected the allegations, suggesting the prime minister himself has been acting on behalf of foreign 'Armenophobic' forces.
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Armenians are once again being targeted, this time by Azerbaijan
In 1915, Armenian Bishop Krikoris Balakian was one of just sixteen survivors out of 250 intellectuals arrested and deported during the Armenian Genocide. His harrowing escape from the death marches into the Syrian desert is chronicled in Armenian Golgotha, a testimony that rebukes historical amnesia and warns of its deadly consequences. This year marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915. On April 24, Armenians around the world will gather to commemorate this tragedy. In 2015 the Armenian Church canonised the victims, officially declaring them saints. This moment of remembrance is not only about mourning the past, it is about confronting the present. The continuity between historical and continuing atrocities demands that we speak now, without equivocation. Today, the descendants of those same Armenians are once again targeted – this time by Azerbaijan which, in 2023, completed the ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), forcing 120,000 ethnic Armenians from their ancestral homeland. Despite urgent warnings from human rights experts and international bodies, world leaders have yet again looked away. Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous enclave with Armenian roots dating back to the 2nd century BC, and which I have visited, was blockaded for ten months by Azerbaijan, cutting off food, medicine and vital supplies. It culminated in a September military assault and mass exodus, eerily echoing past atrocities. We are not speaking hypothetically. A former ICC Chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, has declared that Azerbaijan's actions meet the legal definition of genocide under Article II(b) of the Genocide Convention. The European Parliament, Genocide Watch and the Lemkin Institute agree. So why is the UK government still unwilling to call it what it is? Worse still, Azerbaijan's assault didn't end with displacement. Twenty-three Armenians, many of them civilians or elected officials of the former Artsakh Republic, remain detained in Baku under spurious charges of terrorism. One was abducted from a Red Cross convoy. Their treatment – solitary confinement, medical neglect and forced confessions – has been documented by human rights organisations and former detainees. They are denied due process. Just days ago, Azerbaijan expelled the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – the only body allowed access to these prisoners. Alongside the Red Cross, BBC Azerbaijan and other credible media outlets were expelled. This was no accident: it is a calculated attempt to sever the last humanitarian lifeline and eliminate scrutiny of human rights abuses. This is not the first time Armenians have been silenced. Azerbaijan has spent years airbrushing Armenian history, destroying ancient churches and cemeteries and denying the Armenian Genocide. It has also cultivated generations of hate: schoolchildren are taught that Armenians are enemies, and convicted murderers of Armenians have been pardoned, glorified and financially rewarded. Let us be clear: this is not a 'conflict.' It is the culmination of a state-sponsored campaign of dehumanisation and erasure. As with past genocides – from Rwanda to Bosnia – the warning signs were there, yet the world did little to intervene. If this is not the moment to act, then when? The United Kingdom is a signatory to the Genocide Convention. That signature is not symbolic – it binds us to prevent, protect, and punish. And yet, we have failed to call out ethnic cleansing when we see it; we have failed to impose sanctions on Azerbaijani leaders responsible for war crimes; and we have failed the victims by speaking in the language of false equivalence. Armenia joined the International Criminal Court by ratifying the Rome Statute. This opens the door to international accountability. Arrest warrants for Azeri officials responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity are now possible. But justice must not only be retrospective – it must be preventative. The international community must urgently demand the release of the 23 Armenian detainees, ensure international observers are allowed back into Azerbaijan, and press for the return of forcibly displaced people. Without these steps, the rule of law is reduced to empty rhetoric. Crucially, the release of Armenian detainees is not only a matter of justice – it is a precondition for peace. Any agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan cannot be sustainable while prisoners remain unjustly held in Baku. Their freedom is not a concession; it is a litmus test of good faith and a necessary foundation for reconciliation. When, a year ago, I delivered the first Archbishop Krikoris Balakian Memorial Lecture at the Armenian Church in London, I asked: does international law still matter? The answer must be a resounding yes, if we are willing to enforce it. Failure to do so will signal that might makes right, and that the lessons of 1915, 1945 and 1994 mean nothing. It will embolden dictators, silence survivors and render phrases like 'never again' as nothing more than historical wallpaper. Let it not be said of our generation what Hitler once asked: 'Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?' It is time we did. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
24-04-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Armenians are once again being targeted, this time by Azerbaijan
In 1915, Armenian Bishop Krikoris Balakian was one of just sixteen survivors out of 250 intellectuals arrested and deported during the Armenian Genocide. His harrowing escape from the death marches into the Syrian desert is chronicled in Armenian Golgotha, a testimony that rebukes historical amnesia and warns of its deadly consequences. This year marks the 110th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide of 1915. On April 24, Armenians around the world will gather to commemorate this tragedy. In 2015 the Armenian Church canonised the victims, officially declaring them saints. This moment of remembrance is not only about mourning the past, it is about confronting the present. The continuity between historical and continuing atrocities demands that we speak now, without equivocation. Today, the descendants of those same Armenians are once again targeted – this time by Azerbaijan which, in 2023, completed the ethnic cleansing of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), forcing 120,000 ethnic Armenians from their ancestral homeland. Despite urgent warnings from human rights experts and international bodies, world leaders have yet again looked away. Nagorno-Karabakh, a mountainous enclave with Armenian roots dating back to the 2nd century BC, and which I have visited, was blockaded for ten months by Azerbaijan, cutting off food, medicine and vital supplies. It culminated in a September military assault and mass exodus, eerily echoing past atrocities. We are not speaking hypothetically. A former ICC Chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, has declared that Azerbaijan's actions meet the legal definition of genocide under Article II(b) of the Genocide Convention. The European Parliament, Genocide Watch and the Lemkin Institute agree. So why is the UK Government still unwilling to call it what it is? Worse still, Azerbaijan's assault didn't end with displacement. 23 Armenians, many of them civilians or elected officials of the former Artsakh Republic, remain detained in Baku under spurious charges of terrorism. One was abducted from a Red Cross convoy. Their treatment – solitary confinement, medical neglect and forced confessions – has been documented by human rights organisations and former detainees. They are denied due process. Just days ago, Azerbaijan expelled the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – the only body allowed access to these prisoners. Alongside the Red Cross, BBC Azerbaijan and other credible media outlets were expelled. This was no accident: it is a calculated attempt to sever the last humanitarian lifeline and eliminate scrutiny of human rights abuses. This is not the first time Armenians have been silenced. Azerbaijan has spent years airbrushing Armenian history, destroying ancient churches and cemeteries and denying the Armenian Genocide. It has also cultivated generations of hate: schoolchildren are taught that Armenians are enemies, and convicted murderers of Armenians have been pardoned, glorified and financially rewarded. Let us be clear: this is not a 'conflict.' It is the culmination of a state-sponsored campaign of dehumanisation and erasure. As with past genocides – from Rwanda to Bosnia – the warning signs were there, yet the world did little to intervene. If this is not the moment to act, then when? The United Kingdom is a signatory to the Genocide Convention. That signature is not symbolic – it binds us to prevent, protect and punish. And yet, we have failed to call out ethnic cleansing when we see it; we have failed to impose sanctions on Azerbaijani leaders responsible for war crimes; and we have failed the victims by speaking in the language of false equivalence. Armenia joined the International Criminal Court by ratifying the Rome Statute. This opens the door to international accountability. Arrest warrants for Azeri officials responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity are now possible. But justice must not only be retrospective – it must be preventative. The international community must urgently demand the release of the 23 Armenian detainees, ensure international observers are allowed back into Azerbaijan and press for the return of forcibly displaced people. Without these steps, the rule of law is reduced to empty rhetoric. Crucially, the release of Armenian detainees is not only a matter of justice – it is a precondition for peace. Any agreement between Armenia and Azerbaijan cannot be sustainable while prisoners remain unjustly held in Baku. Their freedom is not a concession; it is a litmus test of good faith and a necessary foundation for reconciliation. When, a year ago, I delivered the first Archbishop Krikoris Balakian Memorial Lecture at the Armenian Church in London, I asked: does international law still matter? The answer must be a resounding yes, if we are willing to enforce it. Failure to do so will signal that might makes right, and that the lessons of 1915, 1945 and 1994 mean nothing. It will embolden dictators, silence survivors and render phrases like 'never again' as nothing more than historical wallpaper. Let it not be said of our generation what Hitler once asked: 'Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?' It is time we did.
