Truth
And Accountability League

Vic Gerami

310.880.8563

vic@thebluntpost.com

Azerbaijan:
Free 200+ Armenian Hostages Immediately

United
Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture

For Immediate Release:
(Los Angeles) June 24, 2021 – Truth
And Accountability League (TAAL) announces its online solidarity campaign
on Saturday, , to demand that Azerbaijan free all 200+ Armenian
hostages being held illegally since November 9, 2020. The United Nations International Day in
Support of Victims of Torture is an annual event held on June 26 to raise
awareness that despite being banned under the Geneva Convention,
torture continues to be used for interrogations and to humiliate people during
times of war.

Human Rights Watch
(HRW) reported that
Azerbaijani forces abused Armenian prisoners of war (POWs) from the 2020
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Azerbaijani officials subjected them to cruel and
degrading treatment and torture either when they captured them or during their
transfer or while in custody at various detention facilities. Freedom House
later confirmed the report. Armenian fighters tell VICE World News
stories of brutal abuse at the hands of soldiers from Azerbaijan following the
conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

"For the most part,
the world is playing three monkeys and turning a blind eye to Azerbaijan's
crimes against humanity due to many nations' dependence on Caspian oil and gas
that they get from Azerbaijan," said Vic Gerami, founder of
TAAL. He continued, "World leaders give a lot of lip-service about
democracy and human rights, but they ignore President Aliyev's brutal acts
against the Armenians due to geopolitics, their strategic alliances, and
general apathy." 

Background

After the end of the
44-day war resulting from Azerbaijan's, Turkey's genocidal attack and
ethnic cleansing against Armenians of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Azerbaijan
did not release the Armenians prisoner of war (POW). According to international
law, the 200+ Armenians are now being held illegally and are no longer
considered pow. They are hostages. In addition, several other Armenians were
also ambushed and kidnapped after the war ended. Some were executed, others
tortured, mutilated, and abused in various ways. 

UN Secretary-General
António Guterres said, "Torturers must never be allowed to get away
with their crimes, and systems that enable torture should be dismantled or
transformed."

What?

Truth And Accountability
League (TAAL) launches an online solidarity campaign to bring awareness to this
urgent matter and asks human rights and other organizations, NGOs, elected
officials, social justice groups, activists, and the entire international
community to join.

How?

1.    
Change your social media profile and cover photo(s) to the ones provided by TAAL on
Saturday, June 26. 

2.    
Share/post the provided photos (artwork) on your
Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and other social media accounts. 

3.    
Share the provided artwork detailing the United
Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture and TAAL’s campaign to
free the Armenian hostages.

4.    
Please use the following hashtags: #FreeArmenianHostages
#StopAzerbaijaniViolence #StopAliyev #RecognizeArtsakh

This link provides specific
size photos for Instagram profile, Facebook profile + cover, Twitter profile +
cover, and ‘Stop Azerbaijani Violence’ artwork. Please download and use them on
your social media handles.

Additional Steps?

E-mail, write, or call
President Biden and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, asking them to call on
Azerbaijan's President Aliyev to release the Armenian hostages. Please see
below for the contact information. 

President
Joseph R Biden

1600
Pennsylvania Ave Washington, DC 20500

202.456.1111 

president@whitehouse.gov

Secretary
of State Antony Blinken 

2201 C
St NW Washington, DC 20520

202.647.6575

secretary@state.gov

Torture: A Crime Against
Humanity

Torture seeks to
annihilate the victim's personality and denies the inherent dignity of the
human being. Despite the absolute prohibition of torture under international
law, torture persists in all regions of the world. Concerns about protecting
national security and borders are increasingly used to allow torture and other
forms of cruel, degrading, and inhuman treatment. Its pervasive consequences
often go beyond the isolated act on an individual and can be transmitted
through generations and lead to cycles of violence.

The United Nations has
condemned torture from the outset as one of the vilest acts perpetrated by
human beings on their fellow human beings.

Torture is a crime under
international law. According to all relevant instruments, it is absolutely
prohibited and cannot be justified under any circumstances. This prohibition
forms part of customary international law, which means that it is binding on
every member of the international community, regardless of whether a State has
ratified international treaties in which torture is expressly prohibited. The
systematic or widespread practice of torture constitutes a crime against
humanity.

On December 12, 1997, by
resolution 52/149, the UN General Assembly proclaimed June 26 the United
Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, with a view to the
total eradication of torture and the effective functioning of the Convention against
Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment.

June 26 is an opportunity
to call on all stakeholders, including the UN Member States, civil society, and
individuals everywhere, to unite in support of the hundreds of thousands of
people worldwide who have been victims of torture and those who are still
tortured today.

Why Do We Mark June 26?

The UN International Day
in Support of Victims of Torture on June 26 marks 1987 when the UN Convention
Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment,
is one of the key instruments in fighting torture came into effect. Today, the
Convention has been ratified by 162 countries.

About Truth And
Accountability League (TAAL)

Truth
And Accountability League (TAAL) is a non-profit advocacy organization
launched by Armenian-American journalist and activist Vic Gerami. TAAL's mission
is to combat Azerbaijan's and Turkey's organized campaigns of violence,
defamation, disinformation, Armenophobia, and propaganda in the media, public
policy, academia, and among global and regional intelligentsia communities.
TAAL advocates for the right of Armenians of Artsakh to exercise their right to
self-determination, worldwide recognition of the Independent Republic of Artsakh,
and to secure justice and fair treatment to all.