ALC executive director Siranush Sahakyan calls prisoner release an unequal, transactional deal

(Horizon Weekly) – Siranush Sahakyan, an international law specialist, prisoners’ rights representative at the European Court of Human Rights, and Executive Director of the Armenian Legal Center for Justice & Human Rights, has said that the return of four Armenian prisoners from Baku cannot be considered a purely humanitarian act, but rather the result of an unequal political transaction.

Speaking in an interview with Panorama.am, Sahakyan welcomed the return of the four Armenians, noting in particular the long detention of three of them and the serious health condition of Vagif Khachatryan. However, she stressed that the releases coincided with Armenia’s extradition of two Syrian mercenaries to Syrian authorities via Turkey, pointing to an exchange rather than a humanitarian gesture.

According to Sahakyan, discussions about such a deal had already circulated in late 2025. She underlined that Syrian mercenaries hold significant value for Turkish and Syrian circles due to their potential redeployment in other operations, making the exchange fundamentally unequal. In her assessment, Armenia could have secured the release of a larger number of Armenian prisoners in return.

Sahakyan also addressed why members of Artsakh’s former military and political leadership remain imprisoned in Baku. She explained that their cases are part of Azerbaijan’s broader policy of political persecution and the delegitimization of Artsakh, adding that their release is unlikely until Azerbaijan secures court verdicts against them. She warned that these figures are being reserved as Azerbaijan’s final bargaining chip.

Looking ahead, Sahakyan said Azerbaijan is likely to proceed in stages, first releasing those already sentenced, followed by other detainees after ongoing trials, with the Artsakh leadership expected to be addressed only at the very end. She concluded that the overall approach remains transactional rather than humanitarian or grounded in international legal principles.

Sahakyan is a leading Armenian human rights lawyer and the Executive Director of the Armenian Legal Center for Justice & Human Rights, where she focuses on international litigation and the protection of Armenian prisoners’ rights.