Azeri ombudsperson visits jailed Ruben Vardanyan

Azerbaijan’s Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson) Sabina Aliyeva on Friday met with Ruben Vardanyan, Artsakh’s former state minister held by Baku.

According to Azerbaijani media reports, he was allowed to establish contact with his family.

Vardanyan, a prominent Armenian businessman and philanthropist, was taken captive and arrested by Azerbaijani border guards as he attempted to leave Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) for Armenia through the Lachin corridor on September 27.

He has been charged with “financing terrorism", illegally entering Karabakh last year and supplying its armed forces with military equipment.