The head of the office of the Holy See of Echmiadzin, Archbishop Arshak Khachatryan, has been detained by Armenia’s National Security Service. According to his lawyer, Arsen Babayan, the reasons for the detention have not yet been made official. This development comes as the Armenian Apostolic Church (AAC) continues to face mounting pressure amid a growing conflict with the country’s secular authorities.

Khachatrayan, who has been a vocal critic of government interference in church matters, had recently stated that he would not "succumb to blackmail." He linked the pressure on the Church to what he described as attempts by the authorities to meddle in the internal affairs of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The archbishop further warned that the situation in Armenia mirrored scenarios seen in Moldova and Ukraine, where government actions have been seen as attempts to undermine the independence of religious institutions.

The tensions between the Armenian Church and the government date back several weeks, with the controversy surrounding the Ovanavank Monastery at its center. The monastery, according to church officials, has effectively been "taken over" by a group supported by the secular authorities. The issue intensified after Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II stripped Father Aram Asatryan (now known as Stepan) of his clerical status for violating church discipline. Despite this, Asatryan continued to hold services under the protection of security forces, with several prominent figures, including Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, attending.

The AAC has claimed that law enforcement authorities refused to protect the Church’s rights over the monastery, escalating the confrontation. Relations between the Church and the state have soured further after Prime Minister Pashinyan’s sharp remarks on social media, as well as his proposal to alter the process for selecting the Catholicos, granting the state a decisive role in the appointment.

In addition to Khachatrayan’s detention, other members of the clergy have been arrested in connection with the ongoing crisis. Among those still in custody are Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, leader of the "Sacred Struggle" movement, and Archbishop Mikael Azhapahyan, head of the Shirak Diocese. Azhapahyan has called the charges against him "fabricated."

Earlier, an attempt to arrest Azhapahyan was thwarted by churchgoers at the residence of the Catholicos, underscoring the deepening rift between the government and the religious establishment.