VIDEO. No Response from the Ministry of Defense Regarding Our Questions: Norikyan on the Soldiers Who Died in the Barracks Fire

The parents of the 15 servicemen who died in a fire at a military barracks in Azat village will meet with the Military Prosecutor of Armenia tomorrow. This was announced by Norayr Norikyan, the lawyer for the relatives of the fire victims, during a press conference.

"On February 9, I submitted applications to the Minister of Defense of Armenia and the Military Prosecutor of Armenia, requesting a meeting with the parents. On February 28, the parents individually submitted a request to the Minister of Defense for a meeting," he said.

Norayr Norikyan stated that the conclusions of the forensic examinations of the servicemen's bodies contradict the factual circumstances of the case, raising more questions than answers. "It has been stated that the servicemen died from carbon monoxide and burn shock. It is indicated that thermal burns occurred while they were alive," he said, adding that no drugs were found on the servicemen.

"I received a letter from the head of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, answering all questions except for two strategic ones. These relate to the inquiries about the exact timing and circumstances under which Colonel Saroyan received information regarding the servicemen being in their beds, as well as how long after the fire that information was conveyed to the colonel. On February 26, we also directed questions to the Minister of Defense, and to this day, there has been no response from the Ministry regarding our inquiries. The behavior of the Ministry of Defense is perplexing. They not only refrained from meeting with the victims but were also obliged to express public apologies to some extent through their conduct; this is the least they could have done. The meeting with the Military Prosecutor will take place tomorrow," Norikyan concluded.