Release of Armenian prisoners is possible with political will – Siranush Sahakyan

Despite the fact that the leader of a state moving toward peace, Ilham Aliyev, compared Armenian prisoners to “Nazis” and drew parallels with the Nuremberg trials, the issue of releasing Armenian prisoners of war and the political-military leadership of Artsakh remains on the agenda—especially in the context of discussions about a possible Armenia-Azerbaijan “peace treaty.”

Human rights defender Siranush Sahakyan, who represents the interests of prisoners at the European Court, addressed the topic in an interview with Alpha News.

According to her, the criminal cases and trials against prisoners of war, civilians, and Artsakh leaders lack legitimate legal grounds.

“Court rulings themselves cannot be an obstacle to release if there is a political agreement,” she said.

The human rights defender noted that international partners, when addressing the issue, emphasize the need for the unconditional release of Armenian prisoners. In her view, the trials and their outcomes have not been regarded by the international community as legitimate processes.

Sahakyan cited precedents where individuals sentenced to long-term imprisonment were released without serving their full sentences, and such processes were not preceded by legal mechanisms such as pardons or transfers to serve the remainder of the sentence in another country.

“This shows that in the case of political agreement, court rulings are not in fact an obstacle. The Republic of Armenia has previously transferred convicted Azerbaijanis to the Azerbaijani side, who also had not fully served their sentences,” Sahakyan said.