ArmInfo. Veronika Zonabend, the wife of Ruben Vardanyan, has announced a new humanitarian initiative aimed at restoring contact between Armenian detainees held in Azerbaijan and their families. he full text is provided below:

ArmInfo The US House Foreign Affairs Committee is set to vote on an ANCA-backed amendment - authored by Congressman Brad Sherman - calling for America to apply diplomatic, economic, legal pressure - including full enforcement of Section 907 - to force Azerbaijan's release of Armenian hostages 

ArmInfo.  The Baku Court of Appeals has begun hearing appeals filed by the defense of Armenian prisoners of war held in an Azerbaijani prison.

ArmInfo.In advance of U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's visit to Armenia, the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) welcomes the continued strengthening of U.S.-Armenia relations and sustained high-level engagement between the two countries. At the same time, the Assembly remains deeply concerned by Baku's continued refusal to release all Christian Armenian hostages wrongfully imprisoned in Azerbaijan and urges their immediate and unconditional release.

ArmInfo.  A new report by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) found that the trials of Artsakh leaders in Baku "fell short of the guarantees of fairness and equality of arms required under international human rights law".

ArmInfo. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has dismissed allegations of government inaction regarding the release of Armenian captives held in Baku, shifting the blame toward the domestic opposition.

ArmInfo.  For the current Armenian authorities, the issue of Armenian prisoners of war and the protection of their rights have ceased to be a foreign policy agenda. This was stated by Mesrop Arakelyan, co-founder of the "Country for Life" party, on his Facebook page, responding to a message from former Artsakh Foreign Minister David Babayan from Azerbaijani  captivity.

ArmInfo.  Former Foreign Minister of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic David Babayan, currently in Azerbaijani captivity, addressed all human rights activists and people of good will. The audio message was transmitted to NEWS.am through David Babayan's family.

ArmInfo.  The families of Armenian prisoners held in Baku have addressed an open letter to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney requesting that Canada's Senior Official  for Hostage Affairs be engaged in the case of Armenian prisoners and  to support efforts for their immediate and unconditional release. 

ArmInfo.  On the eve of the upcoming 8th Summit of the European Political Community and the Armenia-European Union Summit to be held in Armenia, around three  dozen human rights and civil society organizations from Armenia have  addressed an open letter to European Commission President Ursula von  der Leyen and European Council President Antonio Costa, calling on  them to support the release of Christian Armenian prisoners held in  Baku.

ArmInfo. International lawyers representing the families of seven Armenian hostages held in Azerbaijan have filed an official appeal to the UN Working Group on  Arbitrary Detention, demanding their immediate and unconditional  release, as reported by the  Artsakh Union organization.

ArmInfo.Below is a statement by the Office of the RA Human Rights Defender: The message from Mr. Ruben Vardanyan, addressed to the Human Rights  Defender of the Republic of Armenia, Ms. Anahit Manasyan, has been  disseminated through social and mass media platforms.

ArmInfo. Below is a  statement by Ruben Vardanyan addressed to the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia, Anahit Manasyan (conveyed during a telephone  conversation with family)

ArmInfo.On 13 March, during a phone call with his family, Ruben Vardanyan attempted to deliver a public address to Azerbaijan's Ombudsperson, Sabina Aliyeva. The call was forcibly terminated.

ArmInfo.Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Robert Abisogomonyan and International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Vice-President Gilles Carbonnier emphasized the importance of resolving all humanitarian issues at a meeting in Geneva in the context of post-conflict reconstruction and  reconciliation.

ArmInfo. Below is a statement  by Armine Afeyan and the Aurora Humanitarian Foundation on the  Sentencing of Ruben Vardanyan 

ArmInfo. Mane Tandilyan, co-founder of the "Country for Life" party, responded to the Baku "court"'s verdict against former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan. "During the staged "trial" in Baku, another predetermined "verdict" was delivered: the great patriot Ruben Vardanyan was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Do the authors of this "trial" know that ideas cannot be condemned. They cannot be stifled in prison cells, they cannot be silenced by false verdicts? The declared "end point" of this insane process is in fact a new beginning. The beginning of new perseverance, new determination, a new struggle. A struggle for the return of our compatriots held in Baku prisons. A struggle for dignity, justice and national identity. Ruben, we are waiting for your return. I know that bars do not measure your freedom. I know that you are freer in spirit than your "judges" will ever be. And I promise you, there will be no silence. There will be no reconciliation with injustice. We will fight until your return home, and the return of all our captives, is "A reality," Tandilyan wrote on her Facebook page.

ArmInfo.Armenian society had certain expectations regarding Armenian prisoners of war  following US Vice President J.D. Vance's visit to Baku, but the Azerbaijani president's subsequent statements raised even more questions. This was stated by Tigran Abrahamyan, Secretary of the "I  Have the Honor" opposition faction in the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, at a briefing on February 16.

ArmInfo. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has praised the process of normalizing Armenian-Azerbaijani relations. He expressed  this viewpoint in an interview with FRANCE 24 in Munich.

ArmInfo. The Socialist International issued a statement expressing outrage and deep concern over the Baku Military Court's decision to impose lengthy prison terms on 15 Armenian defendants out of 19 Armenian prisoners still in  Azerbaijan, arrested in the context of the former Nagorno-Karabakh  conflict. Statement on the Sentencing of Armenian Detainees in Azerbaijan and the Need for Continued Peace Efforts in the South Caucasus.