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Int'l institutions turn blind eyes to torture of Azerbaijani sevriceman in Armenia - Expert

13 April 2023 16:50 (UTC +04:00)

The rights of military personnel, both in wartime and in conflict zones, are protected by several international conventions. The Geneva Conventions and the three protocols added to them in 1977 and 2005 are considered the main documents of International Humanitarian Law, a political expert Yegane Hajiyeva told APA while commenting on the torture of an Azerbaijani soldier found in Armenia.

He said that international humanitarian law, known as the law of armed conflicts, is divided into two branches - "Geneva law" and "Hague law".

According to the expert, the "Geneva Law" is aimed at the protection of military personnel who are no longer participating in combat and persons who are not directly involved in hostilities, that is the civilian population.

"The Hague Law" defines the rights and duties of the warring parties during military operations and limits the means used against the enemy. The countries that have signed these conventions within the framework of the UN, the Council of Europe, and the OSCE have the obligation to comply with them. During the 30-year occupation period, as well as during the active 2 and a half years after the war, Azerbaijan treated the captured Armenian soldiers in accordance with these conventions. Sometimes even this behavior causes criticism in the country, that a thin, skinny Armenian is fattened up in an Azerbaijani prison and is handed over to the other side completely healthy. So far, in very few cases, accusations have been made against Azerbaijan on the basis of real facts. Azerbaijan treated the prisoners in the manner required by international conventions. The law also requires that if he is guilty, he is arrested or held in a temporary detention facility until his guilt is clarified. Armenia should also keep captives, if they are guilty of crimes, in an appropriate place until clarification, take care of their health, and ensure their safety. In other words, it should be ensured that they are kept in a place away from the population and soldiers," Yegane Hajiyeva noted.

As for the treatment of the Azerbaijani soldier detained in Armenia today, the expert noted that the videos clearly show that the Azerbaijani soldier was tortured: "Two of our servicemen got lost in foggy weather and crossed to the territory of Armenia. Despite this, they are treated like criminals. A soldier had a duty to his state and fulfilled it. If he goes astray, there are international conventions that protect his right. There was a time when a 162-member Armenian diversionary group was detained in the territory of Azerbaijan. The point is that they were terrorists and came to plant mines in our territories. They were caught with guns on them. However, from the US State Department to the Council of Europe, the European Parliament, the OSCE, and other international organizations defended them. For several hours now, despite the fact that Azerbaijan has informed the international bodies and activists and bloggers have covered the issue on social networks, new videos about the beating of our soldiers in the Armenian segment are appearing. This means that our soldiers are regularly tortured, and the police and military watch it. An interesting point is how the civilian population beat our soldiers detained by the Armenian military and police. So, it is the military and the police who put it in the hands of the civilian population. Some reports say that those who attacked him were the parents of dead Armenian soldiers. After all, how can a soldier suddenly appear in the city so that the parents fall on him? So, this work was done in a planned way. The Armenian government is actually responsible for these tortures. Because it directly creates conditions for it. This is also a carte blanche given to Armenia over the double standards of international human rights institutions. These institutions, which demand their priorities from us, turn blind eyes to despite the fact that our soldier has been tortured for 4-5 hours."