{"id":1875,"date":"2026-07-20T15:33:38","date_gmt":"2026-07-20T15:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/?p=1875"},"modified":"2026-07-21T12:33:23","modified_gmt":"2026-07-21T12:33:23","slug":"another-armenian-prisoner-in-azerbaijan-rebukes-yerevan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/?p=1875","title":{"rendered":"Another Armenian Prisoner In Azerbaijan Rebukes Yerevan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Yet another former leader of Nagorno-Karabakh jailed in Azerbaijan has accused Armenia\u2019s leadership of being indifferent to the fate of Armenian prisoners and hostages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Major-General Davit Manukyan, who had served as a deputy commander of Karabakh\u2019s Armenia-backed army, challenged Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to publicly comment on \u201cfabricated and false\u201d accusations leveled against himself and seven other former Karabakh Armenian leaders remaining in Azerbaijani captivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSadly, those [prisoners] who are held here do not feel the breath of the Republic of Armenia,\u201d he said in an audio message communicated to his family by phone and publicized on Monday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The former Karabakh leaders were captured right after the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive that restored Baku\u2019s full control over Karabakh and forced the region\u2019s Armenian population to flee to Armenia. They all denied a long list of war crimes charges leveled against them. Five of them, including Manukyan, were sentenced to life in prison, while the three others, only because of their age of over sixty, received 20-year prison sentences in February this year in trials denounced by Amnesty International as a \u201ctravesty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They all deny the accusations, including those concerning the planning, preparation, and conduct of the 2020 war in Karabakh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Appealing to Pashinyan, Manukyan said: \u201cSince you were Armenia\u2019s prime minister and at the same time commander-in-chief at that time — and the planning of the war starts precisely from that level — I urge you to present your position on these specific accusations,\u201d he said. \u201cFailure to respond will mean that you agree with the false accusations, thereby making not only you but also the entire Armenian people complicit.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Two other Armenian prisoners — billionaire Ruben Vardanyan and former Karabakh parliament speaker Davit Ishkhanyan — have likewise lambasted Pashinyan in their statements from an Azerbaijani prison. Ishkhanyan charged earlier this year that Armenia\u2019s leadership does not want Baku to free the 15 Armenian prisoners. Pashinyan, who is currently on vacation, has not reacted to the claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Armenian premier and other officials insist that Yerevan has been doing its best to secure the prisoners’ release. Their critics dismiss these assurances.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Full Statement by Major-General Davit Manukyan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Major-General Davit Manukyan, former First Deputy Commander of the Defense Army of the Republic of Artsakh, has released this voice message from a Baku prison:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dear compatriots, I hope you are partially aware that the judicial process based on the appeal of 15 citizens of the Republic of Armenia continues in the Baku Court of Appeals. I must note that this legal process is not directed solely against these 15 individuals, but against the past and present of the Armenian people, since, according to the indictment and the verdict, it dates back to the beginning of the last century.
Of course, regarding all these fabricated and falsely advanced charges, my colleagues and I continue our just struggle in court, refusing to allow our rights, as well as the rights of the Armenian people and Armenian statehood, to be humiliated.
At this moment, I address my words to the citizen of the Republic of Armenia, Nikol Vova Pashinyan, regarding one of the false charges brought against us. According to Articles 100.1 and 100.2 of this country’s Criminal Code, we face charges for planning, preparing, and waging an aggressive war in September 2020. This is despite all the undeniable evidence and facts we have presented, and furthermore, it all took place in plain sight of the international community.
Nevertheless, since you were the Prime Minister and simultaneously the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Armenia at that time\u2014and the planning of a war begins precisely at that level\u2014I urge you to publicly state your position specifically regarding these charges. Failure to respond will mean that you agree with these falsely advanced accusations, thereby making not only yourself but the entire Armenian nation complicit.
I hope the word on your lips from the past has not been lost. In addition, I expect to know the official status of those of us held here, in accordance with the Republic of Armenia’s official position.
It is also painful that those held here do not feel the presence of the Republic of Armenia; but it is what it is; this is the reality.
Due to time constraints, I will stop here.
Farewell for now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Davit Manukyan<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Former Deputy Commander of the Artsakh Defense Army David Manukyan has addressed a message to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan from an Azerbaijani prison.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manukyan was taken captive on September 27, 2023, following Azerbaijan’s military aggression against Artsakh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On that day, he had attempted to cross the Hakari Bridge by car together with his wife and former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan. They were detained at the border.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Notably, last year, former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, who is also being held captive, issued a special apology to Manukyan’s wife from an Azerbaijani prison, saying that had she not been in their vehicle, David Manukyan would be free today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manukyan, who also served as First Deputy Commander of the Artsakh Defense Army during the 2020 44-day war, was discharged from military service in 2021 by a presidential decree following the war. In other words, at the time of his capture, he was no longer an active serviceman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was not possible to obtain a response from Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan regarding Manukyan’s questions. Both the Prime Minister and his spokesperson are currently on vacation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Human Rights Lawyer: Baku Has Held Armenia Responsible for All of Its Military Attacks and Aggression<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The fact that Baku has sentenced 19 Armenian detainees\u2014including the former military and political leadership of Artsakh\u2014to prison terms ranging from 20 years to life imprisonment on fabricated charges is also affirmed by Siranush Sahakyan, the legal representative of Armenian prisoners before the European Court of Human Rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The human rights lawyer stated that the Azerbaijani authorities have blamed Armenia for all of their military attacks and acts of aggression, including the 2022 invasion of Jermuk, and have placed the entire burden of the humanitarian consequences of the wars they themselves initiated on the military and political leadership of Artsakh through allegations of individual criminal responsibility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“In every trial involving Armenians that has begun in Baku, the prosecution has presented as fact the claim that Armenian forces, under the leadership of the Armenian authorities, were the aggressors in every military confrontation. The charges brought against the leaders of Artsakh, as well as Ruben Vardanyan, include preparing and waging an aggressive war. According to this narrative, it was the Armenian side that initiated hostilities in 2016, 2020, and 2023. Remarkably, even the events in Jermuk are portrayed as a war initiated by Armenia,” the lawyer said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Siranush Sahakyan noted that statements issued by various international organizations and countries regarding Azerbaijan’s aggression and offensive actions likewise demonstrate that the criminal cases and convictions against the Armenian detainees have nothing to do with justice, as Baku is falsifying the entire historical record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

“Regarding the events in Jermuk in 2022, we have the official position of the United States, which condemned Azerbaijan’s aggression against Armenia,” she noted.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Incidentally, despite accusing Armenia of planning an aggressive war, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly declared publicly over the past six years that it was Baku that decided to restore its territories by military means, employing its “Iron Fist.” Just recently, in Martakert, he threatened that, if necessary, Azerbaijan would resort to the same method again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 19 Armenian detainees held in Azerbaijani prisons, with the exception of former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, have appealed their convictions before the Court of Appeal. As former Speaker of the Artsakh National Assembly, Davit Ishkhanyan, previously stated, the appeals are merely procedural, and the detainees have no expectation of justice from the Azerbaijani judicial system. Rather, the purpose is to pave the way for applications before international courts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Azerbaijan, widely known for its systematic human rights violations and its practice of imprisoning political opponents, has refused to provide even copies of the judgments to 15 of the Armenian detainees.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yet another former leader of Nagorno-Karabakh jailed in Azerbaijan has accused Armenia\u2019s leadership of being indifferent to the fate of Armenian prisoners and hostages. Major-General Davit Manukyan, who had served as a deputy commander of Karabakh\u2019s Armenia-backed army, challenged Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan to publicly comment on \u201cfabricated and false\u201d accusations leveled against himself and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1882,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,6,12,5,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-about-the-hostages","category-advocacy","category-english","category-news","category-trials"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1875"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1875\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1890,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1875\/revisions\/1890"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1882"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/freearmenianhostages.net\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}