How and when Artsakh State Minister and philanthropist Ruben Vardanyan was arrested (video)

Azerbaijan arrested Vardanyan on September 27, 2023, while he was crossing the Hakari bridge. He was returning to Armenia after the occupation of Artsakh, along with other leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Ruben Vardanyan announced that he was moving to Artsakh to live and work near an ancient tree with deep, strong roots that is 2,000 years old. In September 2022, he renounced his Russian citizenship and went to Artsakh, where he was appointed Minister of State in November.

Vardanyan held the position of State Minister for three months. However, after leaving the post, he continued to live in Artsakh. A few days before his arrest, on September 19, he highlighted how Azerbaijan had begun large-scale military operations against the civilian population.

A few months after his arrest, Vardanyan went on a hunger strike, demanding the immediate and unconditional release of himself and other Armenian prisoners unlawfully held in Baku. After a phone conversation with his wife on April 25, he agreed to end the hunger strike.

On June 13, Vardanyan's international legal team submitted an urgent application to the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, stating that the Azerbaijani government was conducting torture and ill-treatment against him. The prosecutor general of Azerbaijan announced that the preliminary investigation was complete and that the case would soon be sent to court. He had made a similar statement two months earlier, on June 24.

The authors of the book "Ruben", father and daughter Gasumyanov, have compiled evaluations and honest opinions from Armenian and Russian figures in various fields, as well as high-ranking specialists, about Ruben Vardanyan. They also discuss the philanthropist and entrepreneur's versatile talent and significant achievements for humanity.

The main partner of the book "Ruben" is Ardshinbank.