Violent Assault Brigades Operated in Azerbaijan's NSS Detention Facilities, Beating Armenian Prisoners to the Point of Unconsciousness: Evidence Submitted to International Organizations

When captured, regardless of which armed forces or military units are involved, prisoners of war are regarded as individuals under the responsibility of the state that has captured them. Prisoners of war must be immediately evacuated to camps; they are not allowed to be held in prisons or closed facilities.

This was stated by human rights defender Siranush Sahakyan during a press conference addressing international accepted norms on the detention of prisoners. She emphasized that it is forbidden to hold prisoners in cells under conditions equal to those of criminals.

"There are clear requirements regarding physical integrity. Their honor and dignity are under enhanced protection; physical violence and torture are not allowed. The conditions provided for prisoners cannot be less favorable than those provided for their military personnel in the same area. Obligations exist concerning the treatment of wounded individuals. The occupying state is obliged to take measures to locate and provide medical assistance to those wounded on the battlefield,” Sahakyan stated.

Sahakyan highlighted that there are special regulations concerning forcibly disappeared soldiers and noted that there have also been cases of forced disappearances in this war. "Nearly ten months later, the fates of many individuals who remained alive under Azerbaijani control remain uncertain. In this case, those responsible are not only the individuals directly involved but also the officials whose lax oversight allowed for forced disappearances,” she pointed out.

Addressing accountability mechanisms, Sahakyan noted, "Although the requirement was for prisoners to be held in camps, such camps were not established; prisoners were initially deprived of their freedom and were severely isolated without any possibility of contact with the outside world, which increased the likelihood of torture." Three institutions were involved in the torture: the Military Police, subordinate to the Ministry of Defense, the Investigative Isolation Facility, subordinate to the NSS, and the prisons under the Ministry of Justice’s oversight. There was a clear pattern of behavior. In the Military Police, individuals were subjected not only to punitive actions and regular beatings but were denied food, sleep, and water throughout their detention, forced to stand continuously, and made to lie on the cold ground, while cold water was poured over them. Punitive beatings continued at the NSS isolation facility, where special assault brigades operated, beating prisoners to the point of unconsciousness. Prisoners were later transferred to prisons under the Ministry of Justice’s supervision, where beatings were not as regular as in the previous establishments, but individuals were still subjected to humiliations.

Sahakyan stressed that they have a serious evidentiary base showing that these three institutions were involved in torture. "These are criminal acts. We are also interested in the application of political accountability measures, which are known to the international community,” she added. Sahakyan noted that all evidence related to the torture of prisoners has been recorded and documented, and it has been brought to the attention of international organizations.