AYF Marks 1,000th Day of Armenian Hostages in Azerbaijan
North American AYF regions issue statement on hostages’ 1,000th day in captivity
The Armenian Youth Federation's North American regions issued a statement on June 29, 2026, marking the 1,000th day of detention for several Armenian hostages held in Azerbaijan. The statement lists 16 named individuals in custody, with detention periods ranging from 1,000 to over 2,000 days. According to the Armenian Legal Center, at least 80 additional individuals are forcibly disappeared and over 200 are missing from post-2020 Artsakh, with Azerbaijan failing to acknowledge or investigate these cases. The AYF statement calls for the immediate release of all detainees, describing their imprisonment as politically motivated persecution connected to Azerbaijan's ethnic cleansing of Artsakh. The organizations claim Armenian hostages face torture, illegal detention, and sham trials.
