ArmInfo. On the morning of March 8, Patriarch of Constantinople of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Mesrob Mutafyan, died in one of the clinics in Istanbul in Turkey. According to the newspaper Agos, Mutafyan's heart stopped.
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and President of Turkey Recep Erdogan, have already expressed condolences on the death of the Patriarch of Constantinople of the AAC (Turkish President expressed condolences in Armenian - Ed. note). Mutafyan's funeral will be held on March 17. To recall, since 2008 Patriarch Mutafyan was very sick and unable to work, and recently he was in a coma. All this time, the issue of electing a new patriarch has been the subject of numerous disputes and conflicts within the Armenian Diaspora of Turkey.
The authority of Patriarch Mutafyan was performed by Archbishop Aram Atashyan, who was not elected by the community, but was actually appointed by the state. The attitude of the Armenian community to Archbishop Ateshyan is ambiguous. He has long been claiming the post of Patriarch of Constantinople of the AAC.