Opposition activist Artur Osipyan released

Artur Osipyan, an opposition activist from Artsakh, has been released from detention after a 22-day hunger strike, human rights lawyer Ruben Melikyan reported.

In a social media post on Thursday, Melikyan said Osipyan was freed on Wednesday evening after a court accepted personal guarantees submitted by several individuals, including civic activist Daniel Ioannisyan.

Osipyan, who had spent more than three weeks on hunger strike while in custody, gave interviews shortly after his release and outlined his views on the case and the broader political situation.

Melikyan welcomed the development, saying he was encouraged that Osipyan remained strong enough to address the public immediately after leaving detention.

“I wish Artur all the best,” Melikyan wrote. “I am confident that the fabricated criminal case against him will soon be dismissed.”

Melikyan, a prominent critic of the Armenian government, argued that public attention should now turn to other opposition figures whom he described as political prisoners.

He named several individuals currently in custody or under house arrest, including former Education Minister Armen Ashotyan, opposition figure Ashot Minasyan, Gyumri Mayor Vardan Ghukasyan, businessman and philanthropist Samvel Karapetyan, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, Archbishop Mikayel Ajapahyan, and a number of other opposition activists.

According to Melikyan, the cases against those individuals are politically motivated and should remain a central concern for Armenian civil society.