Baku court orders 4-month pre-trial jail term for Ruben Vardanyan

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 28, ARMENPRESS. A court in Baku has ordered Ruben Vardanyan to be jailed for 4 months in pre-trial detention, Azeri news media reported Thursday.

Vardanyan, the co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative and former State Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh), was arrested by Azeri border guards while trying to leave Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia along with tens of thousands of forcibly displaced persons.

He was flown to Baku to stand trial on fabricated charges of terrorism financing, illegal border crossing and membership to outlawed armed formations.