Anush Zurabyan, an opposition Armenian National Congress and People’s Party of Armenia alliance (ANC-PPA) candidate for past Sunday’s parliamentary elections in Armenia, has been criticized by the Yerevan-based Yazidi National Committee non-profit and a number of Facebook users for making derogatory and offensive posts on her page about Yazidi people.

“For me, Yazidi cattle, you are worse than Turks,” Zurabyan wrote on Monday and added shortly after that “if there are any Yazidis among my friends, you should all get out of here; for me, you are worse than Turks.” She has already removed the posts from her page, after a number of users commented on them, both condemning and insulting the MP candidate.

In a statement issued on Tuesday morning, the Yazidi National Committee has called on the Armenian National Congress party and the ANC-PPA bloc to express an official position on Zurabyan’s conduct and apologize to the Yazidi people for the hate speech and insult.

“With her posts, Anush Zurabyan insults the dignity of the Yazidi people and disseminates hate speech, driving a wedge into the friendship of the Armenian and Yazidi people. A parliamentary candidate, being a public person, sows xenophobia and calls into question the Yazidis’ full citizenship of the Republic of Armenia,” the statement said.