On May 18 — three weeks before the upcoming parliamentary elections — Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan threatened four opposition political figures with physical retaliation. Three of them lead political parties participating in the election campaign.

As the “justification” for these threats, Pashinyan referred to a video of unknown origin in which four masked and armed individuals threaten him. Without presenting any evidence, Pashinyan attributed the video to the opposition, claiming that his political rivals are backing the masked individuals.

In the past, threats made by Pashinyan have been followed by actions by law enforcement bodies. Such threats from the Prime Minister during an election period in itself calls into question the fairness of the electoral process and the ability of competing political forces to participate under equal conditions. The video featuring the masked individuals — whose origin remains unknown — is used as a pretext.

Given past experience, as well as Pashinyan’s leverage and influence over law enforcement agencies and the judicial system, the threats of physical retaliation voiced on May 18 should be taken seriously and interpreted as a warning of imminent political persecution.

Details and reasoning are available in the statement.