Currently, There Are 21 Armenian Prisoners of War in Azerbaijan

The head of the forensic department of the Investigation Committee, Rafael Vardanyan, stated today, November 5, that there are currently 21 Armenian prisoners of war in Azerbaijan. He noted that these figures are constantly changing. “There are data that are in the phase of verification. There is data concerning two individuals that is being confirmed. Applications have been submitted to the European Court of Human Rights by the Armenian representation and individual human rights defenders to implement special measures and obligate Azerbaijan to provide clear information, as well as to ensure the adherence to all humanitarian norms for Armenian prisoners of war, meaning they should not be tortured and receive necessary medical assistance,” he reported.

Addressing the videos circulating online depicting the torture of Armenian servicemen, Vardanyan stated that all videos are being examined under proper legal procedures. “We have an individual whose tortured image was posted on Instagram; we have also conducted an investigation in that regard, and an investigative request has been sent to various international law enforcement bodies to clarify the information and provide feedback,” he added.

Vardanyan said that those videos have been reviewed, which effectively depict torture of the prisoners of war. “In this regard, individuals have been recognized as victims. Since the number is constantly changing, it would not be correct to state a specific figure. We will complete the data once we have a clear response from Azerbaijan regarding the exact situation of those individuals,” he said.

When asked whether there are cases where torture footage of Armenian servicemen reaches their relatives, Vardanyan confirmed that such cases exist as well.

The death of 84-year-old Misha Melkumyan in captivity was due to head trauma, and there is evidence of violent death. It is important to recall that on October 29, the bodies of 29 fallen Armenian servicemen were transferred to the Armenian side, along with one civilian. The International Committee of the Red Cross reported that the journey of the second civilian, 84-year-old Misha Melkumyan, was medically contraindicated at that time. The next day it was revealed that Melkumyan had passed away.