Vardanyan family calls on int`l community to demand for Ruben  Vardanyan`s and the 22 other Armenian prisoner unconditional release

ArmInfo.The Azerbaijani court has once again extended the pre-trial detention of Ruben Vardanyan,  Armenian philanthropist, and former State Minister of Artsakh, who has been illegally detained in Baku since September 27, 2023.

This is stated in a statement issued by the Vardanyan family, which was  published in connection with the fact that an Azerbaijani court again  extended the pre-trial detention of Ruben Vardanyan, an Armenian  philanthropist and former minister of state of the Republic of  Artsakh.  "For eight months, the Azerbaijani authorities have flouted  international law and human decency by keeping Ruben incarcerated  without trial and without any proper process. They still refuse to  say when any proper trial or hearing will take place on their so  called charges. This decision to extend his detention by another five  months without any due process is another gross violation of his  basic human rights.  While the international pressure on Azerbaijan  continues to grow through the European Parliament resolution, US  congress sanction bill and the French Senate resolution, we, the  Vardanyan family, call on representatives of the international  community - government, business and civil society - to demand for  Ruben's unconditional release and the 22 other Armenian prisoners if  Azerbaijan is to maintain the privilege to host COP29, which  Azerbaijan has proclaimed to be the "COP of peace".  "The repeated  extensions of pre-trial detention without an individualized and  specific determination to justify the denial of bail is another  flagrant violation of Ruben's rights under the International Covenant  on Civil and Political Rights, a treaty to which Azerbaijan is a  state party. The only explanation for the extended delays is this  case is political and that Azerbaijan doesn't have any actual  evidence against Ruben to put him on trial. Therefore, he should be  immediately and unconditionally released," said Jared Genser, the  Vardanyan family's international legal counsel."

Notably, in the fall of 2022, Ruben Vardanyan renounced Russian  citizenship, moved to Artsakh and on November 4, 2022 headed the  government of the republic. On February 23, 2023, he was released  from his post, but remained to live in Artsakh.

A week after Azerbaijan's September aggression against Artsakh,  Vardanyan tried to leave the republic, but was detained at the border  crossing by Azerbaijani security forces. Baku accuses him of  "financing terrorism," "participation in the establishment and in  activities of armed formations or groups not provided for by law,"  and "illegal crossing of the state border of the Republic of  Azerbaijan." From April 5, 2024 Ruben Vardanyan went on a hunger  strike in a Baku prison demanding the release of him and other  Armenian prisoners.