Azerbaijan Risks Sending Cases of 15 Individuals to Court, Says Ara Ghazaryan

“They are not captives, they are not prisoners of war; they are citizens who are in custody and have had criminal cases opened against them. This is the narrative that Azerbaijan is pushing forward,” said international law expert Ara Ghazaryan during a discussion on the fate of Armenian captives held in Baku and their treatment in Azerbaijani courts.

He also drew attention to the term “the military-political leadership of Artsakh,” stating that its use by Armenia was incorrect, as it allows Azerbaijan to advance the narrative that the political leadership has pursued a militaristic policy. “This is a mistake. We need to state that criminal cases have been opened against the chief of staff and the leaders of the country, which will still go to court. They must undergo serious scrutiny in court because they have already forgotten what fair trial means,” Ghazaryan emphasized.

“We should see that lawyers are sitting next to them, not behind glass. We need to see that they can communicate with the outside world, but I am confident that this will not happen because if it does, the trial will get out of control,” he added.

It is noteworthy that on June 24, Azerbaijan's Attorney General Kamran Aliyev announced that the preliminary investigation into criminal cases against the military-political leadership of Artsakh and other Armenians held in Baku had been completed, and the indictment had been sent to court, with the cases of 15 defendants forwarded to the accused and their lawyers for review.

Ghazaryan stated that Azerbaijan is taking a risk with such steps, but whether they like it or not, this trial must take place. “Ensuring these individuals’ right to a fair trial will be Azerbaijan's next failure,” he concluded.

Another participant in the discussion, legal expert Anna Melikyan from the NGO “Protection of Rights Without Borders,” disagreed with Ghazaryan’s comments regarding terminology, mentioning that these individuals ended up in Azerbaijan due to the conflict. “Any person deprived of freedom due to the conflict and who participated in hostilities should have the status of a prisoner of war. Some of the individuals in Baku have directly participated in military operations and should benefit from the prisoner of war status,” she remarked.

She highlighted the fact that it is unclear what charges Azerbaijan has brought against seven individuals. “We conducted a fact-finding mission with partners and were able to confirm the identities of these individuals. Some were deprived of their liberty during or immediately after military operations; one is an adult who was deprived of liberty on September 19 or the following days. He is the 16th and is passing through a separate case. We have three adults who are accused of committing serious military crimes in the 1990s,” she said.

She also pointed out that individuals in Baku's prisons do not have access to legal counsel and have relied on the public defender’s office, which, according to international assessments, is ineffective.