VIDEO. Levon Kocharian's Assistant Arthur Sukoyan Explains Why He Hit a Journalist

Levon Kocharian's assistant, Arthur Sukoyan, detailed the incident involving Civic.am journalist David Levonian in a video message before his arrest. In the video, he states that the journalist has been noted recently for his "mission" to discredit the church, which he finds unacceptable.

Sukoyan attempted to explain this to Levonian: "I approached and said that when the church is targeted and a campaign is launched against it, it is unacceptable to me as an Armenian and a Christian. I told him that when a person attributes disgusting things to the church and its clergy, it is a morally bankrupt process," says Arthur Sukoyan in the video.

According to Sukoyan, in response, David Levonian made accusations against him, to which Sukoyan reacted by hitting the journalist. "Yes, I hit him, he fell to the ground. I did not hit him while he was on the ground, I did not approach him. He started shouting something, but I did not engage with the provocations, nor did I approach him, and I did nothing else. I am not in favor of hitting, but when people cross red lines, it is extremely painful for me. It is unacceptable to me that the Armenian Apostolic Church is targeted, especially by Armenians in the Republic of Armenia," he emphasizes.

Arthur Sukoyan also notes that ultimately he was unable to explain to the journalist why he was hurt by what was said. Earlier, media reported that on April 30, an argument occurred between Arthur Sukoyan and journalist David Levonian in the territory of the National Assembly building, during which Sukoyan hit the journalist. Reports indicate that Sukoyan was angered by Levonian's publication regarding Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan of the Tavush Diocese. On May 2, the Investigative Committee announced that Arthur Sukoyan had been arrested for two months.