BAKU, Azerbaijan, Aug.2
Trend:
Azerbaijan’s Prime Minister Ali Asadov has given instructions in connection with the graves and burials in the territories [liberated from Armenian occupation in the 2020 Karabakh war], the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Citizens told Trend on August 2.
The liberation of the Azerbaijani lands created a new reality, the commission said.
“Through instruction of the head of state, de-mining, infrastructure restoration and construction are being carried out in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan," said the commission.
According to data gathered by the commission, including witness statements, Azerbaijani citizens killed by the Armenian armed forces and terrorist groups during the occupation of settlements during the first Karabakh war [in the 1990s] were buried in the liberated territories.
"Unprofessional exhumation of unknown graves discovered during the relevant work in the liberated territories, and careless handling of the remains can lead to the loss of information, evidence and artifacts, which can create serious problems in identifying the remains," the commission noted.
"Given the above and the importance of clarifying the fate of 3,890 Azerbaijani citizens who went missing during the first Karabakh war, the prime minister instructed the relevant state structures to inform the State Commission for Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Citizens when mass graves or individual graves were identified during carrying out construction and restoration work in the liberated territories in order to carry out exhumation by specialists," added the commission.