After night outdoor, relatives of Armenian POWs stop their protest

Caucasian Knot

Aug 9 2022

Residents of Armenia, demanding the return of their relatives from Azerbaijani captivity, spent the night near the government building and stopped the action after they agreed to schedule a meeting with the Prime Minister.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that relatives of the Armenian soldiers who were taken prisoner of war (POWs) after the end of hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh have repeatedly held actions demanding their return home. On August 8, they demanded a meeting with Nikol Pashinyan, the Premier.

The participants of the sit-down picket stated that authorities are indifferent to the fate of their relatives.

“We haven’t met the Premier for a year now; he didn’t want to meet us. Time passes, but our guys stay there,” said the father of one of the POWs.

The protesters noted that the POWs’ situation is getting worse day by day.

In the morning, the protesters agreed with an official from the Premier’s office about the end of the sit-in picket. Authorities promised to announce the date of the meeting with the Premier, the “NEWS.am” writes.

In December 2020, a month after the end of the full-scale hostilities in Karabakh, a total of 64 soldiers from several Karabakh combat posts, mostly residents of the Shirak Region of Armenia, were taken POWs. Some of them were returned to their homeland; others were prosecuted in Azerbaijan for espionage, terrorism and illegal border crossing. On May 25, 2022, Pashinyan announced that 39 citizens of Armenia were still in Azerbaijani captivity.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on August 9, 2022 at 12:12 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

See earlier reports:
Relatives of Armenian POWs demand a meeting with Pashinyan, Relatives of perished Armenian soldiers achieve open trial on their complaint, Relatives of perished servicemen come out to protest in Yerevan.

Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.

Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2022/08/13/after-night-outdoor-relatives-of-armenian-pows-stop-their-protest/

Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS