Searches and detentions in Gyumri

Citing Hovik Petrosyan, a candidate from Robert Kocharyan’s Armenia Alliance, Azatutyan reported that law enforcement officers had conducted searches in the homes of alliance members and their supporters in Gyumri this morning.

According to Petrosyan, as cited by RFE/RL, around 12 of the alliance’s supporters, including the head of one of the Gyumri headquarters, have been detained. He added that it had not yet been possible to establish contact with those taken into custody, nor which specific authority detained them. No law enforcement agency has commented on the allegations as of posting.

The Armenia Alliance has claimed the party members are being illegally detained, including potentially under the pretext of being questioned as witnesses, calling it a ‘violation of electoral rights’.