The Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople on Wednesday, October 26 held a meeting to discuss the situation in the Holy See created because of Archbishop Mesrop II Mutafyan's illness.

As Armchurch.info reports, the attendees decided to declare Patriarch Mesrop retired and obtain permission from relevant authorities for holding new patriarchal election.

The patriarch acts both as a religious leader and a leader of Turkey’s ethnic Armenian community concentrated in Istanbul, as the patriarchate also runs several non-profit organizations.

Mesrob II, 59, is the 84th patriarch of Turkey’s Armenian Orthodox community who succeeded Karekin II in 1998. The Armenian patriarchate was established in Istanbul after the city’s conquest by the Ottoman Empire, and oversees Armenian churches throughout the country.

Turkish law bans the election of a new patriarch while his predecessor is alive. A patriarchal election is required to be held by the synod, and the synod has to apply to the Interior Ministry after approving the election. The government ruled out an election of a new patriarch, but a group of Armenians filed a lawsuit for the removal of the regulations blocking the election. The legal process is still underway.