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1. Armenian prisoners reach 1,000 days in captivity
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| June marks 1,000 days since Armenian prisoners of war, civilian hostages and the political leadership of the Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) were taken into Azerbaijani captivity.
At least 19 Armenians remain unlawfully detained in Azerbaijan, including Artsakh leaders Ruben Vardanyan, Arayik Harutyunyan, Bako Sahakyan, Arkadi Ghukasyan, Davit Ishkhanyan, David Babayan, Levon Mnatsakanyan and Davit Manukyan.
Their captivity is not an isolated injustice. It is part of Azerbaijan’s wider campaign against the Armenian people of Artsakh: war, genocidal blockade, forced displacement, ethnic cleansing and the attempted erasure of Armenian political, cultural and religious presence from Artsakh. These prisoners and hostages are being used to send a message to an entire displaced population: that return, dignity and justice will be punished.
The Armenian population of the Republic of Artsakh has the right to return safely, collectively and with international guarantees to its ancestral homeland. After 1,000 days, Azerbaijan’s hostage-taking remains a standing indictment of its crimes against Armenians and of the world’s failure to confront them. |
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| Veronika Zonabend, the wife of Ruben Vardanyan, has launched a humanitarian initiative to deliver letters of support to Armenian hostages imprisoned in Azerbaijan. The campaign seeks to help those in detention remain connected to the outside world and know they have not been forgotten. “It is an attempt to restore at least a minimal connection between those in detention, their families, and all those who care about their fate,” Zonabend said.
Over the next two weeks, letters of support will be collected and delivered alongside family care packages.
Letters may be sent in any language to:
letters@freearmenianprisoners.com
Subject line: “Letter of Support – Armenian Detainees”
Those writing to a specific hostage should include the individual’s name in the subject line. |
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| “When the war in Nagorno-Karabakh came to an end, Vicken Euljekjian was captured by Azerbaijani soldiers. In an interview with Blankspot, he recounts his 1,891 days in captivity, the years he spent in solitary confinement, and the freedom he ultimately regained”.
“You have to understand how bad it was”, he says. “The air was humid – suffocating. In summer the heat was unbearable. There were mice everywhere. It was the worst place you can imagine”.
Read the complete interview by Rasmus Canbäckhere: https://blankspot.se/free-after-1-891-days-in-azerbaijani-captivity/ |
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2. Israeli Cabinet approves Armenian Genocide recognition proposal
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Israel’s cabinet has unanimously approved a proposal to formally recognise the Armenian Genocide on June 28, sending the measure to the Knesset for a final vote.
The proposal was introduced by Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, who said: “It is never too late to do the right thing”. He described recognition as “both a moral and historical duty” and said Israel must “firmly condemn any denial, minimisation, or distortion of the historical truth”.
The resolution states that “the Armenian Genocide began on April 24, 1915, with the arrest, deportation, and murder of hundreds of Armenian clergy, leaders, and intellectuals in Constantinople”. The genocide led to “the deaths of approximately 1.5 million people, and the destruction of thousands of years of cultural and historical heritage”.
If approved by the Knesset, Israel would officially recognise the Armenian Genocide for the first time. When will the UK do the same?
The complete resolution can be read here: https://www.gov.il/en/pages/the-government-of-israel-unanimously-approves-fm-sa-ar-s-proposal-to-recognize-the-armenian-genocide-28-jun-2026
Turkey lashed out at Israel after it recognised the Armenian Genocide, branding it a “political” decision to cover its own alleged crimes. “The Israeli government, which has systematically persecuted the Palestinian people before the eyes of the entire world and is being tried at the International Court of Justice on charges of committing genocide against the people of Gaza, is seeking to cover up its own crimes through the political decision it has adopted regarding the events of 1915,” says a foreign ministry statement.
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| ANC-International Statement on Israeli Cabinet’s Armenian Genocide Recognition Decision
Today, the Government of Israel unanimously approved the proposal of the country’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gideon Sa’ar, to officially recognise the Armenian Genocide. According to reports, the draft resolution on recognition will now be submitted to the Knesset for adoption.
In his remarks, the Foreign Minister noted that similar initiatives had been introduced in the past but had failed to reach their logical conclusion.
The Minister also stated that this was not an ”act of retaliation” for the open hostility, along with the terrible rhetoric and the hostile actions of Turkey, under Erdogan’s leadership, towards Israel,” presumably referring to the justified assertions of not only by Turkey, rather by the significant part of the international community, that Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza.
Considering the fact that numerous Jewish figures spoke out on this issue during the years of the Genocide as eyewitnesses, and later, as intellectuals, politicians, and a political party (Meretz), called upon the State of Israel to recognize the Armenian Genocide, Minister Sa’ar is right when he says: “It is never too late to do the right thing. […] This is both a moral and historical duty. And in my opinion, there is no strong reason to be avoiding it.”
If and when this initiative reaches its logical conclusion, and the Israeli Parliament also approves the recognition of the Armenian Genocide as a matter of state policy, we will welcome that position, while at the same time reiterating Minister Sa’ar’s own reasoning addressed to Turkey—that such recognition “does not grant it (in this case, Israel) immunity from historical truths,” including with regard to its complicity in the crimes committed against the Armenian population of Artsakh.
At the same time, we expect that, having recognised the Armenian Genocide, Israel will assume its responsibility by supporting the preservation of its memory and combating its denial.
Armenian National Committee – International
28 June 2026
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3. Sam Mason appointed Artsakh Union Goodwill Ambassador
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| The Artsakh Union has appointed British human rights advocate Sam Mason, Chief Executive of HART, as its newest Goodwill Ambassador.
Mason will support international advocacy for the rights of the displaced people of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), including the preservation of their cultural heritage and their safe return to their ancestral homeland.
“Theirs is a hidden tragedy,” said Mason. “Just a few years ago, an entire population – some 150,000 people – was forced from its homeland. Now displaced and largely forgotten, what happens next to their unique dialect, rituals, and mountain traditions? We must not allow the spirit of Artsakh to fade”.
“The story of Artsakh presents an important test for Britain,” Mason said. “It challenges our willingness to stand with vulnerable communities when they face overwhelming pressure from more powerful states”.
Artak Beglaryan, Founding President of the Artsakh Union and former Human Rights Ombudsman for Nagorno Karabakh, said the displaced population “faces a severe humanitarian crisis that remains absent from global media coverage and overlooked by international institutions. We are striving to secure justice and uphold our people’s right to return to our ancestral homeland.”
Mason added: “International law is clear: people should not be severed from the land that defines their historical identity. The people of Artsakh have a legal right to return.” |
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| Sam Mason published an article on June 4 reflecting on the displacement of the Armenian population of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh).
Mason writes that more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians fled Nagorno Karabakh in September 2023, while warning that the consequences continue to be felt today. “This is not only a humanitarian crisis. It is also a cultural one”, he writes.
Mason highlights the loss of homes, churches, cemeteries, traditions, language, memory and community life, stressing that the Right to Return is also a cultural question. “The people of Nagorno Karabakh have not disappeared. Their culture has not disappeared. Their connection to their homeland has not disappeared”, Mason writes.
“We must not allow the spirit of Artsakh to fade”.
Read the complete text here: https://www.hart-uk.org/blog/nagorno-karabakh-a-community-displaced-not-disappeared/ |
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4. Council of Europe Commissioner calls for long-term support for displaced Artsakh-Armenians
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| The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Michael O’Flaherty has published a memorandum on “the human rights of Karabakh Armenians displaced to Armenia”, following a visit to Armenia on February 2026.
The memorandum states that, “following the September 2023 military operation by Azerbaijan in the Karabakh region, over 100,000 Karabakh Armenians fled to Armenia”. It notes that those arriving in Armenia came “in a state of exhaustion, hunger and mental and physical distress, faced with an uncertain future”.
The Commissioner also states that the situation has now “transitioned from an emergency phase to a long-term integration challenge”. Among the outstanding issues, the memorandum highlights that “many of them lack Armenian citizenship”, that “the restoration of identity and other key documents of Karabakh Armenians has remained difficult”, and that Armenia “lacks a comprehensive integration strategy”.
On the right of return, the Commissioner notes that it “continues to hold significant importance for Karabakh Armenians, given their profound connection to the region and aspiration to re-establish ties with their places of origin”. |
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5. ECHR Rules against Azerbaijan over beheaded Armenian soldier
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| The European Court of Human Rights has issued its first judgment in cases related to the 2016 April Four-Day War. According to information published by the Court, the ECHR found that Azerbaijan violated the right to life of an Armenian soldier and the prohibition of torture, concerning the beheading and mutilation of the body. The judgment orders Azerbaijan to pay €90,000 in compensation to the victim’s relatives.
The case concerns events during the 2016 April Four-Day War, when Azerbaijani armed forces ambushed Armenian soldiers, injured them, and then beheaded and mutilated their bodies. According to the report, Azerbaijani news channels’ own coverage, in which Azerbaijani special forces presented their actions as “heroic deeds”, played an important role in the judgment. |
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6. News articles and recent developments
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| The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention and Human Security issued a statement on June 6 warning that it is “seriously concerned for the sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia”.
The statement refers to threats facing Armenia’s border communities, particularly ahead of the June 7 parliamentary elections, and quotes an anonymous villager from Syunik: “In Yerevan people call us crazy for staying here, but they don’t understand that if we leave this place, they’d be next”.
The Institute stated that “Armenia’s sovereignty is non-negotiable” and said that “whatever happens with Armenia’s election on June 7, the international community must apply a genocide prevention mechanism to economic and diplomatic relations in the South Caucasus”.
The statement also urged “international observers, media outlets, and civil society organizations” to investigate allegations from frontline communities and Artsakh refugees, including reports of “Azerbaijani gunfire targeting civilian homes”, “illegal Azerbaijani outposts established inside Armenian sovereign territory”, and discrimination against Artsakh refugees.
The Lemkin Institute further warned that “Azerbaijan committed genocide in 2023 and will not stop at that single instance of the crime”, calling on the international community “to finally take seriously the threats faced by Armenians in the South Caucasus”. |
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| Residents say Azerbaijani forces have entrenched inside Armenia’s Shikahogh State Reserve and are clearing hectares of forest to build roads, dugouts, and fortified positions, according to a report by CivilNet published on June 22, citing sources consulted by RFE/RL.
“Shikahogh, in the southern Syunik province, is Armenia’s second-largest forest reserve and home to roughly 1,100 plant species and to animals listed in Armenia’s Red Book. Azerbaijani forces first pushed into the area, including toward the village of Nerkin Hand, in 2021. Sections of the reserve along the border have since been turned into Azerbaijani positions and connecting roads. One resident said the troops were cutting roads, building dugouts, and using felled timber both for construction and as firewood”.
“Ayser Ghazaryan, a forester who monitors the area via satellite imagery, said Azerbaijan has destroyed about 60 hectares of forest — thick oaks and hornbeams totaling some 17,000 cubic meters — and that the logging has not stopped. He estimated that roughly 3,200 hectares now lie in the direct line of fire, with a smaller stretch under observation and within range of mortars of up to 60 millimeters. He called it ecocide against Armenia’s natural heritage, not only a question of territory”. |
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| The Guardian has published a feature on Gagik Tsarukyan’s plan to build the world’s tallest Jesus statue on Mount Hatis, a project he describes as “Armenia’s calling card” and says will make Christianity “Armenia’s new brand”.
The article also highlights criticism from the Armenian Apostolic Church and environmental groups, who argue that Armenia’s Christian identity has historically been expressed through monasteries, churches and khachkars, not oversized monuments. As one local resident told The Guardian: “I don’t quite understand why it has to be this big. It’s all a bit crass”. |
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Why Donate?
The Armenian National Committee of the United Kingdom (ANC-UK) is the largest and most influential British-Armenian political grassroots organisation.
Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout Britain and affiliated organisations around the world, ANC-UK actively advances the concerns of the British-Armenian community on a broad range of issues.
The work achieved by ANC-UK is currently on a volunteer basis. However, we are hopeful that in the coming years through the financial support of our community, the ANC-UK chapter will have the necessary funds to open a full-time office employing an Executive Director and a part-time Administrative Assistant.
Setting up an ANC-UK office will allow for our organisation’s goals to be achieved as they have been throughout the diaspora in the United States of America, Canada, Australia and Europe.
As a grassroots organisation, we rely upon you, our community and friends for financial assistance to advance our cause. Your donations support our goal of having a full-time office, to advocate on issues important to all British-Armenians and the Armenian cause.
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