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Armenian MP Naira Zohrabyan from the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party has appealed to women leaders in Europe to force Azerbaijan to release Lebanese-Armenian Maral Najarian and the other Armenian prisoners of war (POWs) from captivity.

Maral Najarian had moved to Berdzor, Artsakh after the massive Beirut port explosion. She was taken prisoner on Goris-Stepanakert highway when heading to Berdzor to transport her personal belongings to Yerevan after the end of the war on 11 November 2020.

Azerbaijan has already officially confirmed the fact of the woman's capture and some reports suggest that she is being kept in Gobustan prison, about 70 km away from Baku.

“I have appealed to the women leaders of Europe, as well as all organizations dealing with human rights and women's issues to force Azerbaijan to release Maral and all the other POWs,” the MP wrote on Facebook.

“I have appealed to all the women of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) to call on Azerbaijan and Aliyev’s spouse, a UNESCO goodwill ambassador, to immediately return civilian captive Maral Najaryan to Armenia.

“I have appealed to UNESCO, which awards the title of goodwill ambassador to the wife of a war criminal country’s president, so that the organization urges, within its mandate, its Azerbaijani goodwill ambassador not to trample on international humanitarian law, not to keep Armenian prisoners and Maral Najarian as a “political currency” and immediately return all POWs to Armenia under the Third Geneva Convention,” Zohrabyan said.