Azerbaijan Denies Existence of Numerous Prisoners of War Under Its Control: Armen Grigoryan

On July 30, Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs Armen Grigoryan received Thierry Ribaut, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation in Armenia. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported this.

During the meeting, Grigoryan emphasized the urgent need for the immediate repatriation of Armenian prisoners of war and civilians unlawfully held in Azerbaijan, deeming the prosecution against them by Azerbaijani authorities under fabricated criminal cases unacceptable.

Specifically, Grigoryan noted that according to the Third Geneva Convention, these individuals possess prisoner of war status and thus should be protected under international humanitarian law. He added that Azerbaijan's policy contradicts point 8 of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020, which stipulated the exchange of prisoners of war, hostages, and other detained individuals.

It was highlighted that Azerbaijan denies the existence of a significant number of prisoners of war under its control as documented by numerous sources and refuses to provide information about them, including hiding their places of detention. Such behavior raises serious grounds for suspicion regarding serious crimes committed against prisoners, including forced disappearances.

Addressing the issue of humanitarian assistance for affected populations, Grigoryan stressed the need to expand the presence of international humanitarian organizations in Artsakh. He also drew attention to the humanitarian situation created by Azerbaijan's aggressive actions against Armenia's sovereign territory, expressing concern that the ongoing presence of Azerbaijani armed forces in Armenian territory disrupts the normal lives of residents in border communities and leads to violations of their rights.

In turn, the head of the ICRC delegation informed about the steps being taken by the organization to ensure communication between prisoners and their families, as well as detailed the ICRC's activities in border areas.