Search Operations for Bodies in Artsakh Halted from October 18

Following the 2020 Artsakh war, search operations commenced immediately and were carried out for a year, resulting in the discovery of 1,697 bodies due to exchanges of remains with Azerbaijan. This was reported by Hunan Tadevosyan, the head of the information and public relations department of the State Emergency Service of Artsakh on his Facebook page.

“On November 13, 2020, in accordance with an agreement reached in advance with the Russian peacekeeping forces, the ICRC mission, and the Azerbaijani side, the State Emergency Service actively participated in the search process, which began in Shushi. That day, for the first time, Armenians and Azerbaijanis met face-to-face to negotiate the exchange of the bodies of fallen soldiers. The operations were coordinated on site by the former head of the Emergency Service (currently Minister of Internal Affairs) Major General Karen Sargsyan and his deputy (now head of the Emergency Service) Colonel Mekhak Arzumanian. Sargsyan emphasized the importance of this work for both sides and stated that the service is ready for any complex task.

During the past year, a total of 1,697 bodies have been confirmed as a result of search operations and exchanges of bodies with Azerbaijan. The search operations were halted as of October 18,” wrote Tadevosyan.