PreferredUS Congressman Brad Sherman has proposed demanding that Azerbaijan immediately release all Armenian prisoners, reports the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).
In the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Sherman proposed an amendment to the House Foreign Service Act (H.R. 9086) that calls on Azerbaijan to immediately and unconditionally release all Armenian prisoners of war and political prisoners.
The politician recalled Azerbaijan’s military aggression in Nagorno-Karabakh and the ethnic cleansing of more than 100,000 Armenians who have lived there for about 2,000 years. He also pointed to footage posted online that documents the extrajudicial executions of Armenian prisoners.
“Given documented executions of Armenian POWs by Azerbaijani forces, including several executions which were horrifically recorded and distributed on social media, as documented by Human Rights Watch, it is vital that the United States clearly advocate for the immediate and unconditional release of all Armenian POWs,” Sherman told the committee.
Sherman also framed the release of Armenian hostages as directly aligned with US President Donald Trump’s South Caucasus peace efforts.
“As President Trump continues his efforts to secure lasting peace in the South Caucasus, securing the release of Armenian POWs and political prisoners would be a significant step toward this achievement,” he said.
The proposal was supported by House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast.
The amendment will next come before the full House Foreign Affairs Committee for a recorded roll call vote, after which, if adopted, the measure will advance to the full House.
