BAKU, Azerbaijan, Sept. 16
By Elchin Mehdiyev – Trend:
The information about attracting of professional mercenaries by Armenia from abroad has been disseminated since the period of Armenian ex-President Serzh Sargsyan’s power, Faig Ismayilov, Chairman of the Azerbaijani ‘Organization for Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments in the Occupied Azerbaijani Territories’ Public Association, told Trend on Sept. 16.
“So, during one of the meetings with voters within his first election campaign, Sargsyan promised to attract 60,000 members of Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) from Syria and Iraq to the Nagorno-Karabakh region,” chairman of the association added.
Ismayilov stressed that before attracting so many militants, it was necessary to solve their social problems.
"Thus, the large-scale work was launched to create the settlements in the abolished Hadrut, Askeran districts, as well as in Lachin, Kalbajar and Gubadli districts and repair the apartment buildings in Shusha and Khankendi," chairman of the association said.
Zabukh village, Lachin district. The houses of Azerbaijanis are being destroyed in the village and a military settlement is being created there
Ismayilov stressed that Armenia began to populate the Nagorno-Karabakh region with the aforementioned PKK members and drug dealers.
“In fact, the number of the Armenians resettled here is about 1.5 times more than the number of those who previously lived in the Nagorno-Karabakh region,” chairman of the association said. “If after the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh war, the number of Armenians here was no more than 30,000, presently, their number varies between 70,000-80,000.”
“The Armenians violate the norms and principles of international law, the Geneva Convention and various international legal agreements by the artificial settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which began in the occupied territories in 1992,” Ismayilov added.
“During the recent investigation of the issue of resettlement of the Armenians from Lebanon to the Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenians, it became clear that professionally hired militants and their families, rather than civilians, as the Armenians claim, are resettling to the Nagorno-Karabakh region,” chairman of the association said. “Such illegal settlement is classified as a war crime in international law.”
“The Hayastan All-Armenian Fund allocated $312.8 million, the Armenian community of Nagorno-Karabakh - $51,300 and notorious US model of the Armenian origin Kim Kardashian - $70 million to attract professionally hired gunmen from Lebanon,” Ismayilov said. “The Armenians who are being resettled in the Nagorno-Karabakh region will fight against the Azerbaijani army through these funds."
Dozens of buildings in Shusha and Khankendi have been repaired and prepared for the mercenaries.
Military settlement, created in Khinalig village, Gubadli district
A military settlement built in Madagiz village of the abolished Aghdere district
A military settlement built in Talish village of the abolished Aghdere district.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.