The ruling party and opposition traded blows, as a political standoff following June’s disputed elections continues
The Armenian Parliament erupted into an all-out brawl, with ruling-party and opposition lawmakers trading punches and hurling chairs as deepening political divisions spill into violence.
The confrontation broke out on Thursday after MP Taron Chakhoyan, from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s ruling Civil Contract party, launched personal attacks against the family of Narek Karapetyan, the head of the opposition Strong Armenia faction, during a debate over the party’s election campaign.
Opposition lawmakers approached the podium, triggering a scuffle that rapidly descended into a mass brawl. Footage from the chamber shows Deputy Speaker Vahagn Aleksanyan, a ruling-party member, throwing a chair at opposition MPs. Lawmakers also reportedly wielded bottles, and one deputy was knocked to the floor.
At least one opposition MP suffered a bloody nose, and another had his clothes torn, according to local media. The session was eventually suspended, but clashes reportedly continued in the corridors before security personnel intervened.
Pashinyan blamed the opposition, defending his party’s lawmakers and describing their response as “proportionate and appropriate.”
“If anyone thinks they can lay a hand on a member of parliament and hit them, we will simply break that hand. If necessary, we will break it with a chair,” the prime minister said.
Read more Pashinyan wants to trade Russia for Europe. Armenia could lose bothOpposition lawmakers accused Deputy Speaker Ruben Rubinyan, who was presiding over the session, of allowing the violence to unfold by failing to intervene. Armenia Faction leader Anna Grigoryan accused the ruling party of deliberately provoking the confrontation and suggested that the incident may have been orchestrated.
The parliament is no stranger to fistfights – the clash on Thursday is reportedly the third this month. The incident comes amid an increasingly bitter struggle between Pashinyan’s government and its opponents following June’s disputed parliamentary elections.
Post-election power struggle
Pashinyan’s pro-EU Civil Contract party won a decisive victory in the elections in June, which was viewed as a referendum on Armenia’s geopolitical future. Two opposition blocs – billionaire Samvel Karapetyan’s Strong Armenia and former President Robert Kocharyan’s Armenia Alliance – entered parliament, while Prosperous Armenia narrowly missed out, helping Pashinyan retain a constitutional majority.
Read more Armenian PM persecutes dissent as West turns blind eye – rights groupAll three opposition parties favor closer ties with Russia, a key trade partner that supplies discounted gas. Pashinyan has pursued EU integration while continuing to reap the economic benefits of ties with Moscow.
The opposition has rejected the election results, alleging widespread vote-rigging and pressure on public-sector employees and military personnel. Pashinyan has escalated his attacks on his rivals, calling them “criminal oligarchs” who serve foreign interests. He claimed that the newly elected opposition emerged through “absolutely illegal actions” and threatened to bar them from political activity.
Opposition figures condemned the moves as a political crackdown, citing criminal cases against prominent rivals and plans to nationalize Strong Armenia founder Samvel Karapetyan’s electricity distribution network. They also accuse the West of giving Pashinyan free rein to suppress dissent in exchange for his anti-Russia pivot.
Read more Armenian Church leader faces historic trial amid feud with pro-Western PM (VIDEO)The political crisis is compounded by Pashinyan’s escalating confrontation with the Armenian Apostolic Church, one of the country’s most influential institutions and a critic of his government. Pashinyan accused senior clergy of political meddling and having ties to foreign intelligence services, including Russia, which the church denies.
The rift deepened in August with the unprecedented criminal prosecution of the church’s supreme leader, Catholicos Karekin II. Opposition and church figures denounced the case as part of a broader crackdown on dissent.
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