Armenian prime minister accuses military of attempted coup

Nikol Pashinyan rallies supporters after military calls on him to step down amid anger at Nagorno-Karabakh defeat

The Armenian prime minister has accused the armed forces of an attempted coup against his government after top military officers signed a letter calling on him to resign, in an escalation of the political crisis sparked by Armenia's defeat in the war in Nagorno-Karabakh last year.

Tensions between Nikol Pashinyan and the military erupted into open conflict on Thursday as the chief of the armed forces general staff, Onik Gasparyan, and other senior commanders accused the prime minister of bringing Armenia to the brink of collapse".