An Armenian court yesterday began the trial of the powerful head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, in the latest episode of the dispute between the country’s religious authorities and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II and six bishops, all senior members of the Church hierarchy, are accused of obstructing the enforcement of a court ruling in a civil dispute involving another cleric, Gevorg Saroyan.

The bishop had supported Pashinyan’s campaign for Church reform while serving as head of the Diocese of Masyatsotn. He was removed from his position in January, but a court ordered that he remain in office pending a new ruling.

Karekin II and the bishops are accused of obstructing the implementation of that court decision, while Pashinyan has for months accused the Armenian Apostolic Church of engaging in political activities and maintaining ties with foreign intelligence services.

The religious leaders were not present at today’s preliminary hearing, held in Armavir Province in the western part of the country, and were represented by their lawyers, the Church said in a statement.

“The state’s interference in the decisions of the Catholicos (…) violates the autonomy of the Church, the constitutional relationship between Church and State, and the fundamental principle of religious freedom,” Karekin II’s lawyer, Ara Zohrabyan, wrote on Facebook.

The case first came before the court in August, but the judge requested to recuse himself, while a jurisdictional dispute further delayed the proceedings.

The confrontation between the Church and the Prime Minister began following Armenia’s military defeat by Azerbaijan in 2020. Karekin II subsequently called on Pashinyan to resign.

Last year, security forces arrested more than a dozen clerics, including the influential Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, who had led mass protests against Pashinyan in 2024.

These arrests and prosecutions have deepened divisions in Armenia, where the Apostolic Church is one of the country’s most powerful institutions.