BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct.12
Trend:
The targeted killing of Azerbaijani citizens, especially children and women by the Armenian Armed Forces with the use of ballistic missiles must be properly assessed by UN, EU, the Council of Europe, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and other organizations as a violation of international law and humanitarian principles, Member of UN Committee on Elimination of Discrimination against Women, legal expert Elgun Safarov told Trend.
According to Safarov, for this, the Azerbaijani government will prepare special reports and submit them to international organizations. At the same time, it’s necessary to send these documents to the international military tribunal, which will be created in the future.
"Azerbaijan can submit a proposal to establish a special commission within the UN to prepare a report confirming the recent targeted shelling of civilians, children and women by Armenian troops,” he said. “For this, documents prepared by the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General's Office, the Ombudsman, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the State Committee for Family, Women and Children and other organizations in connection with war crimes against civilians and humanity will be used.”
The committee member added that the crimes of Armenia against the civilian population of Azerbaijan not only affects the conflict between the two countries, but also directly impacts the regional security.
The expert noted that the Azerbaijani government is taking important measures to ensure security, stability of the psychological state of civilians living in the districts along the Azerbaijani-Armenian border and the conflict zone, their access to water and communal resources.
“However, despite this, the Armenian Armed Forces bomb schools, houses, kindergartens, hospitals and other civilian objects. As a result of the Armenian attacks, the lives and health of children, women, the elderly and the disabled in those districts and cities are under threat,” Safarov pointed out. “Psychologists and social workers must work with the affected civilians for a long time, and their safety and health must be ensured.”
"As part of this aggression, back in 1992-1994, the Armenian government already used bacteriological and other prohibited types of weapons against the Azerbaijani population. The recent use of cluster bombs and poisonous gases by the Armenian Armed Forces in violation of international humanitarian norms was registered," he said.
On October 11, 2020 at about 2:00 AM (GMT+4) Armenian Armed Forces fired missiles at multi-apartment residential buildings in the central part of Ganja, the second largest city of Azerbaijan, located outside the frontline zone.
According to the latest data, 9 civilians, including 4 women, were killed as a result of missiles hitting the buildings.
The Armenian Armed Forces, flagrantly violating norms and principles of international law, the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and Additional Protocols to it, as well as the requirements of the humanitarian ceasefire declared on October 10th, continue to deliberately target the civilian population of Azerbaijan, and intensively bombard densely populated settlements.
Armenian Armed Forces launched a large-scale military attack on positions of the Azerbaijani army on the front line, using large-caliber weapons, mortars, and artillery on Sept. 27.
Azerbaijan responded with a counter-offensive along the entire front. As a result of retaliation, Azerbaijani troops liberated a number of territories previously occupied by Armenia, as well as take important, strategic heights under control.
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.