Armenia Bloc: Armenian government follows course of isolating  opposition and eliminating all pockets of resistance

ArmInfo. The Armenian government, having accepted all external demands, has embarked on a course of isolating the opposition and eliminating all possible  pockets of resistance.

The press service of the Armenia Bloc issued this statement amid  searches of homes and businesses belonging to the family of Armenia's  second president, Robert Kocharyan, since early this morning.

The political party noted that the illegal actions taken against the  leader of the Armenia Bloc and his family members are yet another  cynical manifestation of a leadership that has lost its legitimacy  and is maintaining its power solely through illegal means. "This is  not a legal process: it is the blatant use of the state apparatus to  further one person's political fears and revenge. The violent  campaigns that immediately follow threats from the parliamentary  rostrum demonstrate one thing: the ruling regime, while accepting all  external demands, has set a course to isolating the opposition and  eliminating all possible pockets of resistance. By staging cheap  spectacles for its own electorate, the current government is also  attempting to exacerbate the existing atmosphere of fear in society,"  the political force stated.

In light of the above, the Armenia bloc warned that speaking to them  in terms of blackmail, illegal proceedings, and fabricated  prosecutions is futile. "Neither Kocharyan, nor his family, nor our  political team can be broken or forced to accept the current  situation. We will continue our struggle and make every effort to  resist any new concessions being forced upon Armenia. No dictatorship  lasts forever, and those who authored and perpetrated illegal actions  will be held accountable," the political force concluded.

As a reminder, it was reported this morning that security forces,  following a search, had taken second Armenian President Robert  Kocharyan to the Anti-Corruption Committee.  Furthermore, searches  were also conducted early on the morning of August 25 at Levon  Kocharyan's home. They lasted seven hours. It was also reported that  dozens of addresses belonging to companies belonging to the Kocharyan  family were also searched. Later, the Anti-Corruption Committee of  Armenia confirmed the detention of Robert Kocharyan and his son,  Sedrak Kocharyan. Robert Kocharyan is accused of abuse of office,  accepting a bribe on an especially large scale, and money laundering.  Nine other individuals are also involved in the case. Aram Orbelyan,  the lawyer for the second Armenian president, reported that Kocharyan  was detained on charges similar to those brought against him  following the June parliamentary elections in Armenia. Orbelyan  specified that the charges relate to Kocharyan's ratification of  certain government decisions during his presidency. A little later,  the office of Armenia's second president announced that Robert  Kocharyan had been hospitalized from the Anti-Corruption Committee  building due to an earlier operation. Notably, the previous day,  Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had ordered law enforcement  agencies to strip Kocharyan and the third president of the Republic,  Serzh Sargsyan, of their property.