Bishop Hovnan Hakobyan, Primate of the Diocese of Gougark of the Armenian Apostolic Church, has responded sharply to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s recent comment during a cabinet meeting, in which he described Armenian churches as “turned into storerooms.” The bishop said the remark “has enraged the faithful public.”

In a Facebook post, he wrote, “Today, during the cabinet meeting, the nation’s chief destroyer once again shamelessly attacked the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church, this time labeling sacred churches as ‘storerooms’.”

“We do not wish to delve into the details of this disgraceful statement, which has already sparked public outrage expressed through comments and Facebook posts,” he added.

Bishop Hovnan also drew attention to a major international conference currently taking place in Switzerland, dedicated to preserving the Armenian spiritual and cultural heritage of Artsakh. The event is being held under the leadership of His Holiness Karekin II, Catholicos of All Armenians.

The bishop noted that the forum discusses the protection of Artsakh’s cultural and spiritual legacy, the safe return of the Armenians of Artsakh to their ancestral homeland, their right to live freely, and the immediate release of prisoners of war.

“The fact that this global conference has caused discontent and unease in enemy country Azerbaijan, and that the nation’s chief traitor simultaneously launched another attack on the church, seems no coincidence,” the post concluded.

Earlier, Prime Minister Pashinyan said during a cabinet session that several churches he visited with the education minister were in disrepair: “I officially say our churches are storerooms. S-t-o-r-e-r-o-o-m-s. Wherever there's non-state property, you see tiles stacked, bags of cement, leftover materials, and rusty rebar,” he said.