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People led by Artsakh’s Human Rights Defender Gegham Stepanyan on Friday held protests outside the UN office and foreign embassies in Yerevan, demanding action to secure the release of Armenian prisoners illegally detained in Azerbaijan.

"Unlike France and the US, Russia was on the ground when Azerbaijan launched another attack against the people of Artsakh on 19 September 2023," Stepanyan said at a protest outside the Russian Embassy in Yerevan.

"As a matter of fact, 18 out of 23 prisoners of war or hostages illegally held in Baku were captured in Artsakh at the time when Russian peacekeepers were stationed there. In other words, they were captured in September 2023,” he said.

“This underscores the important role that Russia can and should play in the repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war and hostages, also using its ties with Baku,” Stepanyan added.