Podcast Hosts Critical of Pashinyan’s Government Detained in Armenia by Masked Officers

Masked officers in Armenia have detained opposition figures and podcast hosts Narek Samsonyan and Vazgen Saghatelyan following searches of their homes in Yerevan that lasted more than an hour. Both men are known for their outspoken criticism of the government through their popular Imnemnimi podcast.

The detentions occurred less than a week after the two hosted a seven-hour episode featuring former President Serzh Sargsyan, who strongly criticized Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan over his approach to negotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh and the 2020 war with Azerbaijan.

However, according to information obtained by RFE/RL’s Armenian Service, the arrests are linked to the November 10 episode of their podcast, in which the hosts discussed Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan and allegedly used offensive language and threats during the show.

Following the searches, officers from the National Security Service (NSS) reportedly took Samsonyan to the Investigative Committee, where he was charged with hooliganism.

Parliament Speaker Simonyan later commented on the case, saying, “All those who commit acts of hooliganism and make threats will be punished by law.” He explained that “beyond emotions, insults, and slander, there is also a criminal element when someone makes a threat. That’s what this is about. We are going to have a different society – one where people do not stab each other. The reason for what happened to these guys was simple – living according to a criminal subculture in which one person humiliates another.”

Simonyan added, “If a threat is made, what should I do? I couldn’t simply ignore it. I reported it. And I will continue to report such incidents in the future.”

The parliament speaker has also filed a civil lawsuit demanding 2 million drams (over $5,000) in compensation from Saghatelyan, along with a public apology on his personal social media page within five working days.

Samsonyan’s lawyer, Ruben Melikyan, said he was denied access to his client’s apartment during the investigative actions. Meanwhile, Saghatelyan wrote on Facebook that masked NSS officers had entered his home. His lawyer, Arsen Babayan, shared a photo from Saghatelyan’s yard, saying he too was not permitted to enter. Later, Babayan posted a video showing Saghatelyan being detained.

The Investigative Committee confirmed that urgent investigative measures were underway as part of a criminal investigation, but did not release further details.

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