Senor Hasratyan Reminds Chief of Staff of Previous Experience Regarding Inability to Recover Bodies

Senor Hasratyan, a colonel in the Artsakh Defense Army and former head of the information and public relations department, has responded to the statement made by the Chief of the Armenian Armed Forces, Edward Asryan, regarding the inability of the Armenian side to search for and recover the bodies of Armenian servicemen after recent clashes that have left them in areas now under Azerbaijani control.

“The Azerbaijani side has not yet given the necessary permission for our units to enter and search for the location of the bodies,” said Chief of Staff Asryan during a press briefing yesterday. In response to a journalist's question about whether there are visible bodies from the Armenian side that are also being prevented from recovery, he added, “The fact is that we have one body in the direction of Kutak, which we have observed with a drone. It is located near the enemy's positions.”

“I could have chosen not to address this issue, but since Chief of Staff Edward Asryan began his military service in the Artsakh Defense Army and rose to the position of commander of the defensive region, he should well remember how the army command operated in similar situations in the past. And if he does not remember, let me remind him of one such incident that took place on November 12, 2014, when an Armenian Mi-24 helicopter conducting training flights was shot down by the enemy in the airspace of the Artsakh-Azerbaijan conflict line. To clarify the fate of the crew of the helicopter that fell in the interposition area and to implement further actions, the command of the Artsakh armed forces developed a special operation plan and exactly one week later, on November 19, they evacuated the body of one pilot, the remains of two others, and certain parts of the helicopter from the crash site. During this special operation, two enemy soldiers were taken out of action, while the Armenian side suffered no losses… This is the difference between past and present leaders, and it is evident not only on the battlefield but also around the negotiation table,” Hasratyan wrote on his Facebook page.