Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called on Azerbaijan to ensure that the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has regular access to Armenian detainees. The call followed an appeal by Ruben Vardanyan, the former state minister of Nagorno-Karabakh. HRW stressed that it had not independently verified the information he provided.
Vardanyan recorded an appeal to Azerbaijan’s ombudswoman, Sabina Aliyeva, on 16 September. It was published two days later. He said that 19 Armenian detainees, including himself, were being held at the Umbaki prison.
“When my cellmate was arrested, his child was 10 months old. The child is now more than three years old and has never seen his father,” Vardanyan said.
In his appeal, he also described problems with medical examinations, notary services, written responses to complaints and access to outdoor exercise. According to Vardanyan, detainees are allowed outside for 20 to 40 minutes once a week, rather than for one hour a day.
On 19 September, the office of Azerbaijan’s ombudswoman rejected reports of violations of the rights of Armenian detainees.
“As part of the activities of the National Preventive Mechanism, meetings were held with people of Armenian origin, including Ruben Vardanyan, both during the preliminary investigation and court proceedings and after their conviction and transfer to penal institutions. The state of their rights, conditions of detention and treatment of them were constantly monitored,” the ombudswoman’s office said in a statement.
The ICRC’s permanent delegation ended its operations in Azerbaijan on 3 September 2025 following a decision by the authorities, after more than 30 years of the organisation’s presence in the country. On 24–25 December, ICRC representatives from Geneva visited detainees whose detention had been reported to the organisation by the Azerbaijani authorities.
In an explanation updated on 30 April 2026, the ICRC said:
“We visit all conflict-related detainees whose names have been communicated to us by the Azerbaijani authorities.”
The organisation also stressed:
“Our ability to visit people detained in any country always depends on the consent of the national authorities.”
The ICRC said its most recent visit to detainees took place in December 2025. The organisation continues its dialogue with the Azerbaijani authorities, but has not publicly disclosed the reasons for the closure of its permanent delegation.
In its statement, HRW called on Azerbaijan to ensure that “all detainees are able to maintain regular contact with their families, receive letters and permitted parcels, obtain necessary medical care and have sufficient time for daily outdoor exercise”. It also urged Azerbaijan to “allow the ICRC regular access to conflict-related detainees”.
