Detention in Connection with Military Operations on November 16

Armed forces of Azerbaijan have invaded the sovereign territory of the Republic of Armenia, where 13 servicemen stationed at a military post were taken captive by the adversary. The military position has come under enemy control. The bodies of two of the captured servicemen, T.S. and A.G., were returned to the Armenian side on November 17 and 19, respectively, while the whereabouts of the remaining 11 soldiers are still unknown.

A criminal case was initiated regarding the loss of the Armenian Armed Forces' military position and the captivity of the servicemen, resulting in the detention of the acting commander of the battalion and the position's observer. This was reported by the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia.

According to the statement, the main investigative department of the military investigation of the Research Committee has determined through comprehensive, complete, and objective research of the evidence gathered during the pre-investigation of the criminal case that G.G., while fulfilling his duties as the acting commander of Battalion No. N of the Ministry of Defense of Armenia on November 16, 2021, violated the rules established by the law on the internal service regulations of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia and the regulations for organizing and conducting combat duty approved by the relevant orders of the Minister of Defense. At the same time, S.M. also violated these rules while serving as a combat position observer. Such actions have led to severe consequences, including the aforementioned invasion by Azerbaijani soldiers.

On November 22 and 23, 2021, G.G. and S.M. were arrested on suspicion of committing a criminal act envisaged in part 3 of Article 365 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia. On November 24, they were charged under the same article, and the measure of restraint applied was detention. The preliminary investigation is ongoing.