Armen Aleksanyan
Charges
Preparation to commit an act of terrorism (Article 43-308 of the Criminal Code of the RA), preparation to seize power (Article 43-419 of the Criminal Code of the RA).
Preventive measures
| Type | Period | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| Detention | 26 Jun 2025 – 25 Nov 2025 | |
| House arrest | 26 Nov 2025 – 23 Feb 2026 | |
| Administrative supervision | 23 Feb 2026 – ongoing |
Facts and Justification
On the early morning of June 25, 2025, the NSS searched the homes of members of the “Holy Struggle” movement. As a result, 18 people were detained, including the movement’s supporter, Armеn Aleksanyan.
Concurrently, the RA Investigative Committee released items found during the searches along with wiretapped conversations of movement members. The wiretaps had been carefully edited to portray the movement members’ planned acts of civil disobedience as preparation to commit terrorism and seize power:
- A private conversation between movement leader Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan and his associate Hovhannes Avetisyan about national defense systems and the applicability of the death penalty was presented as an intent to take lives during protests. The nature of the audio editing indicates this was done deliberately to mislead the public.
- Discussions among movement members about planning civil disobedience actions were selectively presented, with their explicit statements against the use of violence or life-threatening methods omitted. Items commonly used during civil disobedience actions in various countries were presented as evidence of preparations for terrorism (e.g., colored smoke flares, spray paints, firecrackers).
- The wiretaps contain no reference whatsoever to the use of weapons during the movement’s planned acts of disobedience. Nevertheless, the Investigative Committee published photographs of legally owned firearms seized from the homes of certain movement members in an attempt to mislead the public.
- Throughout the entire pre-trial investigation, approximately a month and a half, defense lawyers were prohibited from disclosing any material from the case files. As a result, the only information available to the public consisted of the edited wiretaps and statements by government officials about the movement members that flagrantly violated the presumption of innocence.
The arrests of the movement members were immediately preceded by a Facebook post by RA Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stating: “This process will go down in history as ’the failed coup by scoundrels.’”
Full details of the persecution, context, wiretap analyses, and transcripts are available in the “Injustice in Armenia: Mass political persecutions of 2025: Part A (May–September)” report.
Political motives of persecution
● To limit, reduce or hinder his/her or other persons’ participation in political processes.
● To punish for political speech, behavior or beliefs.
Additional information
On May 11, 2026, five UN Special Rapporteurs and the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention expressed concern in their official communication regarding the broad interpretation and apparent abuse of anti-terrorism legislation against members of the “Holy Struggle” movement, as well as the pejorative statements made by state officials, and submitted inquiries to the RA government.