The Source of Criminal and Terrorist Acts of Azerbaijani Armed Forces in Armenia and Artsakh is Anti-Armenian State Policy, Says Armenian Human Rights Defender

Arman Tatoyan, Armenia's Human Rights Defender, has issued a statement asserting that: "The violence and murder of a peaceful Armenian civilian by Azerbaijani soldiers today in Artsakh is evidence that Azerbaijani armed forces should not be present near civilian settlements in either Armenia or Artsakh. This incident reaffirms that the presence of Azerbaijani forces near Armenian communities and peaceful populations is a violation of the right to life and poses an immediate security threat.

The Human Rights Defender of Artsakh and the National Security Service of Artsakh have confirmed that today, on December 3, 2021, representatives of the Azerbaijani armed forces killed a 65-year-old peaceful resident of the city of Chartar. According to official data published, Azerbaijani soldiers entered the neutral zone and used violence against the peaceful resident engaged in livestock farming, were transferred to an Azerbaijani checkpoint, and unlawfully and deliberately deprived him of life.

The criminal acts of the Azerbaijani armed forces, including terrorist acts, are consistent both in Armenia and Artsakh, and their source is the anti-Armenian and hostile state policy promoted by the Azerbaijani authorities."