Armenia's Top Church Leader, Catholicos Karekin II, to Stand Trial for First Time in Modern History

For the first time in Armenia's modern history, the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church will stand trial after prosecutors referred a criminal case against Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II and five senior clerics to court, deepening an already bitter standoff between the government and the country's most influential religious institution.

According to Armenia's Datalex judicial information system, Karekin II and five members of the Supreme Spiritual Council are accused of deliberately obstructing the enforcement of a lawful court decision by abusing their official positions.

The case centers on the January 2026 dismissal of Bishop Gevorg Saroyan as head of the Masyatsotn Diocese. After being removed, Saroyan challenged the decision in court.

While the lawsuit remains pending, a court ordered that he continue serving as diocesan leader and barred the Armenian Apostolic Church from interfering with his authority or access to the diocese's financial accounts.

Prosecutors allege that despite the court order and a formal notice from Armenia's Compulsory Enforcement Service, Church leaders moved forward with Saroyan's defrocking, knowingly disregarding the court's ruling.

In addition to Karekin II, the defendants are Archbishop Nathan Hovhannisyan, Archbishop Haykazun Najaryan, Bishop Vahan Hovhannesyan, Bishop Edgar Hakobyan and Bishop Artur Hakobyan.

Authorities have also imposed a travel restriction on the Catholicos, preventing him from leaving Armenia while the criminal proceedings are underway.

The dispute has exposed a growing clash between Armenia's civil courts and the Armenian Apostolic Church over the limits of state authority in internal Church affairs.

Church officials have consistently rejected the court's intervention. After the interim ruling was issued in March, clergy from the Masyatsotn Diocese argued that recognizing Saroyan as diocesan leader would violate Church canon law because he had already been defrocked and had reverted to lay status under his secular name, Arman Saroyan.

When announcing Saroyan's dismissal on Jan. 10, the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin said he had been removed for "abuse of the authority vested in the diocesan leader, neglect of official duties, and the use of coercion and pressure against diocesan clergy."

Saroyan later emerged as one of Karekin II's most outspoken critics. He is among the 10 bishops who have publicly called for the Catholicos' resignation, has met with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and has repeatedly criticized the Church's leadership.

The prosecution comes amid an unprecedented confrontation between Pashinyan's government and the Armenian Apostolic Church. Over the past year, authorities have opened criminal cases against several senior clergy, including Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan and Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan, while government officials have increasingly accused Church leaders of crossing into partisan politics.

Prosecutors maintain that the case is solely about enforcing a court order and does not concern religious doctrine or Church governance.

Critics, however, say the prosecution is part of a broader pattern in which criminal proceedings have increasingly been brought against individuals and institutions that have fallen into conflict with the government. The case against Karekin II follows a series of prosecutions involving opposition politicians, prominent business figures and senior clergy, fueling debate over the independence of Armenia's justice system and whether the law is being applied equally.

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