Activity Regarding Prisoners: What Is Known About Vardanyan's Condition

The newspaper "Hraparak" reports: "In recent days, measures have been taken for the release of Ruben Vardanyan and the Armenian prisoners held in Baku for about 7 months. Plans are being made for further actions. They have realized that doing nothing is only damaging to the cause, especially after Vardanyan's hunger strike, which has put the hours at stake.

After their abduction, several NGOs and individuals expressed a desire to actively work to raise the issue in international arenas. However, partly at the request of the Armenian authorities and partly at the request of the families of the prisoners, they refrained from taking action, supposedly to avoid harming the situation, as the Armenian government is said to be addressing the matter.

On April 24, Vardanyan's team organized a march to express their support for the Armenian prisoners. The day before, nearly three dozen NGOs addressed a letter to the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, requesting "decisive steps to address Ruben Vardanyan's health issues." Also on that day, the businessman's son gave an interview to CNN's Christiane Amanpour, stating that they had not heard from his father for a long time. He mentioned that on Saturday, he contacted his sister and said that he had been isolated and was only being monitored for his blood pressure throughout the day."