Another Hearing in the Case of Two Armenian Soldiers in Baku Accused of 'Terrorism'

In the Sabunchu District Court of Baku, the trial of two citizens of Armenia, Ishkhan Ashoti Sargsyan and Vladimirotari Otari Rafaelian, has continued. The Azerbaijani side accuses them of 'terrorism' and 'illegal crossing of state borders.'

According to Azerbaijani media reports, the prosecutor read the indictment, according to which Ishkhan Ashoti Sargsyan, commander of a group from the special forces of the RA Ministry of Defense, and Vladimirotari Otari Rafaelian, who served as a sapper, conducted mine-laying operations on May 27, 2021, along the roads in the territory of the Yukhari Ayrim village in the Karvachar region, which came under Azerbaijan's control as a result of the 44-day war.

Defendant Ishkhan Sargsyan mentioned in his testimony that he 'received an order to mine the roads in the Karvachar region and followed the command.' Media reports suggest that Sargsyan allegedly stated that during the battles in the direction of Tovuz, 'there was an order to blow up the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline.'

The trial will continue on January 24.