Report on Fatalities in the Armed Forces of Armenia and Artsakh in 2018

The Helsinki Civil Assembly Vanadzor Office presents a report on fatalities in the armed forces of the Republic of Armenia (RA) and the Republic of Artsakh (AR/Artsakh) in 2018.

The report compiles data from both official and unofficial sources.

Interestingly, there are discrepancies not only between the unofficial data collected by the Helsinki Civil Assembly Vanadzor Office and official data but also among various official sources, including the Ministry of Defense of the RA, the Military Prosecutor's Office of the RA, and the Investigative Committee of the RA.

The data is presented in the form of infographics.

It is highlighted that according to two official sources—the Ministry of Defense of the RA and the Military Prosecutor's Office of the RA—out of 63 fatalities, 38 are related to military service, while 25 are not. In contrast, data from the Investigative Committee of the RA indicates that out of 50 reported fatalities of servicemen, 37 are related to military service, and 13 are not.

Considering that the Helsinki Civil Assembly Vanadzor Office is aware of only 47 fatalities from unofficial sources, it is noted that information has been disseminated only regarding 47 of the 63 cases, with only 37 of those having an official primary source.

It should be noted that in 2018, there were 7 fatalities due to violations of the ceasefire regime, and 56 were non-combat-related. Among the non-combat fatalities, a significant number were due to traffic accidents (17), health-related issues (13), and cases classified as suicides (11).

This implies that proper attention is not being paid to adherence to vehicle operation regulations, technical requirements for vehicle operation, and in some cases, the preparedness of drivers within the armed forces.

The fact that the second most common cause of fatalities is health issues is believed to be linked to problems in providing medical services within the armed forces and instances of recognizing individuals as fit for military service despite health concerns.

For comparison, it is noted that according to the Prosecutor General's Office of the RA, there were 76 recorded fatalities in 2017, of which 23 occurred due to violations of the ceasefire regime, 10 due to suicide or attempted suicide, 16 due to health issues, 4 due to landmine explosions, 8 due to murder (4 deliberate, 4 due to violations of firearms handling rules), 6 due to accidents (1 from carbon monoxide poisoning, 1 from a grenade explosion, 1 from a hit-and-run, 3 unknown), and 9 due to traffic accidents.

As seen, compared to 2017, the number of fatalities due to violations of the ceasefire regime in 2018 decreased by about threefold (by 16), the number of fatalities classified as murders and due to health issues decreased by 3, while the number of suicides increased by 1, and fatalities due to traffic accidents increased by 8 (almost twofold).

Information from the Helsinki Civil Assembly Vanadzor Office.