BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 5. Former 'head' of now-defunct Armenian separatist regime in Karabakh, Arayik Harutyunyan, has been brought to criminal responsibility, press services of Azerbaijan's State Security Service and the General Prosecutor's Office said in a statement, Trend reports.
"The General Prosecutor's Office and the State Security Service are taking comprehensive measures to investigate crimes against peace and humanity, war crimes, terrorism, and other crimes committed by Armenian illegal armed groups [which had been remaining until September 19, 2022 when anti-terrorist activities were conducted] on the territory of the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan," the press services noted.
"The investigation has identified reasonable suspicions that Harutyunyan, born in 1973 in Azerbaijani city of Khankendi, acting as the so-called 'president' of separatists and under other aliases, took part in conducting an aggressive war on the territory of Azerbaijan. He was involved in recruiting, training, and financing mercenaries and using them in the armed conflict and military operations. He violated the norms of international humanitarian law during the armed conflict by giving criminal orders," the statement said.
Furthermore, there were reasonable suspicions that Harutyunyan was involved in financing terrorism, forming and organizing the activities of armed groups not provided for by the legislation of Azerbaijan, equipping these formations with weapons, components, ammunition, explosives, military equipment, and gear, organizing training exercises for their use, as well as smuggling the aforementioned ammunition and weapons into the sovereign territory of Azerbaijan.
The investigative and operational activities resulted in revealing substantial suspicions that Harutyunyan committed numerous crimes for carrying out terrorist acts, including mining territories of Azerbaijan, launching missile attacks on populated areas and civilian objects in the city of Ganja and Barda district of Azerbaijan [during the 2020 second Karabakh war], which were located outside the war zone.
"These attacks resulted in the deaths of numerous civilians and caused varying degrees of bodily harm. He also organized terrorist attacks on civilian and military infrastructure and numerous other crimes," the statement said.
"On October 28, 2020, Harutyunyan was brought as a defendant under the relevant articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan; based on a court decision, a preventive measure in the form of detention was chosen against him and he was put on the international wanted list. On October 3 of this year, Harutyunyan was detained by officers of the State Security Service of Azerbaijan in Khankendi and charged under articles 100, 116, 117, 120, 214, 214-1, 214-3, 218, 279 and other articles of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan," the statement said.
In order to ensure the provisions of the Trilateral Statement [signed by Azerbaijani, Armenian, and Russian leaders following the 2020 second Karabakh war], suppression of large-scale provocations in Azerbaijan's Karabakh economic region, disarmament, and withdrawal of Armenian armed forces formations from the territories of Azerbaijan, localized anti-terrorist activities were carried out in the region.
Taking into account the appeal of the representatives of the Armenian population of Karabakh through the Russian peacekeeping contingent [temporarily stationed in Azerbaijan under the trilateral statement], an agreement was reached on September 20, 2023, at 13:00 (GMT+4) to cease anti-terrorist activities of a local nature under the following conditions: the formations of the armed forces of Armenia, Armenian illegal armed formations located in Azerbaijan's Karabakh region, lay down their weapons, leave their combat positions and military posts, and completely disarm; the formations of the armed forces of Armenia leave the territory of Azerbaijan; Armenian illegal armed groups are dissolved.
Recently, Azerbaijan has arrested a number of former "officials" of the separatist regime, including Bako Sahakyan, Ruben Vardanyan, and others.
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