Parliamentary Meeting Interrupted in Armenia Following Brawl

Tuesday, July 08, 2025

SAEDNEWS: A brawl between Armenia's lawmakers, their aides and security officers has prompted Deputy Speaker Ruben Rubinyan to suspend today’s parliamentary meeting.

Parliamentary Meeting Interrupted in Armenia Following Brawl

Kristine Vardanyan, a parliament member representing the Armenia opposition faction, said that the brawl had occurred after her colleague in the faction, Artur Sarkisyan, decided to leave the meeting after delivering a speech but was attacked by Vahe Galumyan, a lawmaker from the ruling Civil Contract party.

A video that Vardanyan has posted on social media shows dozens of parliament security officers rushing into the hall, trying to end the scuffle.

Today, Armenian legislators continue discussions of the initiative to deprive Artur Sarkisyan of immunity so that public criminal proceedings can be launched against him. He is one of the suspects in a case involving "an attempt to seize power" in the country, in which 16 opposition figures have already been arrested, including Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, leader of the Holy Struggle movement.