In a landmark 78-minute episode to his 4.96 million YouTube subscribers, American journalist Tucker Carlson put Armenia front and center, bringing its struggle to one of the largest audiences in independent media — calling the arrests of clergy and philanthropist Samvel Karapetyan “a grotesque human rights violation.”
The episode, titled “The Global War on Christianity Just Got a Whole Lot Worse, and Ted Cruz Doesn’t Care,” featured Narek Karapetyan, coordinator of the Our Way (Mer Dzevov) movement and nephew of imprisoned businessman Samvel Karapetyan, followed by international human-rights attorney Bob Amsterdam.
Reaching millions across the world, Carlson used his platform to spotlight three interconnected crises facing Armenia: the Armenian Genocide as a campaign of religious extermination, the ethnic cleansing of Artsakh’s Christian population, and the repression of the Armenian Apostolic Church under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
Carlson warned that these developments represent not just local injustice, but part of a wider global assault on Christianity, drawing parallels between historical persecution and present-day authoritarianism.
Armenia’s Christian Identity & Genocide as Religious Persecution
Carlson opened by underscoring Armenia’s 1,700-year-old Christian identity and the religious nature of the 1915 genocide. Tucker Carlson said “That was a religious genocide, and they were murdered because they were Christians. Tell us how we know that.”
Narek Karapetyan said “The Ottoman army came to all villages of Armenians and asked two questions… Will you convert to Islam? Like 98 percent said no. And then: If you don’t convert, you will go to the desert of Deir ez-Zor. All the men were killed and all the women were taken with children… We lost 70 percent of our population because everyone said no to converting.”
He added that only the small Muslim-Armenian minority survived, proving the persecution was religious.
Narek Karapetyan said “Two percent of Armenians were Muslim, and they still live peacefully. The other 98 percent who refused to convert were killed.”
He called it both tragedy and testimony. Narek Karapetyan said “It has a bright message too — Christians in the 20th century went in the way of Christ and were sacrificed. We hope their sacrifice brings today’s Christians to more faith.”
Carlson called them “Christian martyrs,” stressing that few in the West grasp the faith dimension of the genocide.
Narek Karapetyan said “In 301 the Armenian king Trdat III converted… We are the oldest Christian nation in the world. Seventy to eighty percent of our identity comes from Christian values and our Church.”
Tucker Carlson said “They were murdered because they were Christians. The Armenian community is deeply Christian — it’s what defines Armenian culture.”
Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) & Israeli Weapons to Azerbaijan
Tucker Carlson asked “Over the past thirty years, Armenia has been in a long-running war with Azerbaijan, which is an Islamic country. How many Armenians were killed in that war?”
Narek Karapetyan said “Almost 20,000 people were killed for defending a Christian population of Nagorno-Karabakh. Now, after two thousand years, there is no any Christian in the region.”
He lamented global silence and said even allies offered only symbolic support.
Narek Karapetyan said “Real politics and Turkey’s help to Azerbaijan made many countries avoid supporting us.”
He emphasized Armenia’s unique position as a Christian island among regional powers. Narek Karapetyan said “We are the only Christian nation among Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Iran. What saved our culture was the Church and its schools.”
Carlson pressed him on Israel’s involvement. Narek Karapetyan said “Israel supported Azerbaijan with drones and offensive weapons. We read reports of Israeli operators. Seventy percent of Israel’s gasoline comes from Azerbaijan — they are economic allies.”
Tucker Carlson said “So that would mean Israelis were killing Christians in this war with U.S. tax dollars. Why are my tax dollars being used to murder Christians around the world — in Iraq, in Nagorno-Karabakh — to murder Armenian Christians?”
Pressure on the Church & Arrests of Clergy
Narek accused Armenia’s government of trying to change the Church’s narrative to appease foreign pressures and erase the memory of genocide. Narek Karapetyan said “Our prime minister started an attack on the Armenian Church and head of the Church. He wants to dethrone him, to change the structure of a 1,700-year-old Church because it’s the main institution in our country. Ninety to ninety-five percent of our population are members of the Armenian Apostolic Church.”
He said Pashinyan’s leadership has turned increasingly authoritarian. Narek Karapetyan said “Every year he’s changing to a more authoritarian style. He attacked the Church and took to prison three archbishops.”
One archbishop, he noted, was jailed for saying four years earlier that the prime minister should be changed; another for attending a protest.
He then recounted his uncle Samvel Karapetyan’s arrest. Narek Karapetyan said “After mass, journalists asked about the attacks against the Church. He said, ‘If politicians will not handle the situation, we will take part — our way.’ Thirty minutes later, the prime minister posted that this philanthropist must ‘shut his mouth.’ Three hours later, police special forces came to his residence without a judge’s order. Thousands came to defend him. He decided to go himself to the police station. He was arrested. I was arrested too… He is now in jail in the KGB basement — five months.”
Carlson condemned it unequivocally. Tucker Carlson said “By any definition, a grotesque human rights violation. You’re arresting Christian clergy because you don’t like their views of history.”
He warned that efforts to silence religious leaders or rewrite history often coincide with political repression — a pattern, he said, that should alarm anyone who values freedom of faith.
Narek said 90 percent of Armenians oppose such actions but fear retaliation. Narek Karapetyan said “He wants to change society with power, not soft power. He’s against traditional values — to make it less Christian.”
Bob Amsterdam: “Reputation-Laundering Prayer Breakfast” & State Department Script
Carlson next spoke with Bob Amsterdam, attorney for Samvel Karapetyan, who denounced what he called “U.S.-sponsored religious theater” in Armenia while clergy remain behind bars. Bob Amsterdam said “There’s going to be a prayer breakfast while my client, Samvel Karapetyan, is in jail. Archbishops have been jailed… The leader of the country is trying to split the Church… This man is being feted by American Christians in Yerevan. I call it a reputation-laundering breakfast. The U.S. government allows this to go on.”
He warned that Armenia’s current leadership is waging an internal war on faith. Bob Amsterdam said “Armenia is destroying its Church.”
Amsterdam linked the Church crackdown to Western political pressure for a peace deal with Azerbaijan. Bob Amsterdam said “There’s a lot of pressure from the administration on peace — welcome to all of us, but it’s happened at a tremendous cost to the people of Armenia. 120,000 have been cleansed from Azerbaijan, and no thought has been given to this. We have 23 Christian hostages in Baku, and the prime minister did not even speak of them.”
He accused Pashinyan of seeking to control the Catholicos. Bob Amsterdam said “The leader of the country wants to remove and appoint the Catholicos. He doesn’t understand what an apostolic Church is. Your election must be sanctified by bishops — not a political figure.”
He also criticized symbolic erasures. Bob Amsterdam said “They’ve taken Mount Ararat off stamps. They don’t talk about the genocide. They attack the Church. Armenia has a prime minister who seems to resent his own history as an Armenian.”
On Samvel Karapetyan’s trial, Amsterdam said it was a complete farce. Bob Amsterdam said “[Samvel] is an unbelievably principled Christian, now sitting in his fifth month in jail — innocent of everything other than praising God — and that’s why he’s in jail.”
Western Silence, Faith, and the Weight of History
Carlson and Amsterdam criticized the silence of Western churches and governments. Tucker Carlson said “How many Christian churches in the West have put pressure on the Armenian prime minister to stop arresting clergy?”
Narek Karapetyan said “We are getting support from the West, from churches. There is huge support and we appreciate this.”
He praised his uncle’s steadfastness. Narek Karapetyan said “He could be released tomorrow if he said he would not defend the Church. But he continues to stand with the Church, even though they want to confiscate his businesses. He could be free, but he chooses faith.”
Narek compared his uncle’s ordeal to earlier generations who died rather than abandon Christianity. Narek Karapetyan said “Our ancestors were sacrificed for their religion. This is the same spirit.”
Carlson called it both inspiring and upsetting. Tucker Carlson said “It’s inspiring to watch. It’s upsetting to watch at the same time.”
Amsterdam announced a new report on the case. Bob Amsterdam said “We have this new report titled Pashinyan and the Persecution of Samvel Karapetyan at freekarapetyan.com — sixty pages detailing the entire history of the persecution.”
Carlson concluded by framing Armenia’s struggle within a larger civilizational conflict. Tucker Carlson said “Anyone who’s forcing you to lie about history is your enemy. Whoever controls the story of the past controls the future. Too few people know — and it’s not just about Armenia. It’s a global push against this one specific religion, against Jesus. That’s what they hate.”
Conclusion
Tucker Carlson’s episode stands as one of the strongest Western spotlights yet on Armenia’s growing religious and political crisis. Through the testimonies of Narek Karapetyan and Bob Amsterdam, it exposes an alarming pattern of government pressure on the Armenian Apostolic Church, the arrests of clergy, and the imprisonment of one of Armenia’s most prominent philanthropists.
By calling the crackdown “a grotesque human rights violation,” Carlson linked Armenia’s internal repression to a wider global trend of hostility toward Christianity — from Artsakh to Ukraine — and challenged Western leaders to defend truth, faith, and freedom.
Tucker Carlson said “Anyone forcing you to lie about history is your enemy. Whoever controls the past controls the future.”
The full episode is available on Tucker Carlson’s official YouTube channel.
