BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 14. The corpses of 173 people have been found and handed over to Armenia after the Azerbaijani army's anti-terrorist measures in Karabakh on September 19-20, 2023, the Azerbaijani State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages, and Missing Citizens statement said, Trend reports.
The Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages, and Missing Persons appreciates the press statement from the corresponding body of Armenia expressing readiness to collaborate in determining the fate of individuals missing in hostilities. As always, the commission finds it appropriate to unite efforts in this regard.
"It's important to highlight that Azerbaijan, guided by the principles of international humanitarian law and the relevant provisions of the trilateral statement signed on November 10, 2020, with the active involvement of the Russian Peacekeeping Contingent and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), has offered comprehensive assistance to the Armenian side in conducting search operations in areas where military operations occurred. As a result, after the Second Karabakh War, 1,713 bodies were discovered and handed over to Armenia. After the military conflict on the Armenian-Azerbaijani conditional border on September 12-14, 2022, 157 bodies were found, and following the local anti-terrorist measures by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces in Karabakh on September 19-20, 2023, 173 bodies of military personnel were recovered," the commission said.
As of January 1, 2024, the State Commission has registered 3,890 Azerbaijani citizens as missing in action during the First Karabakh War, with only 25 of them having their remains identified.
At the same time, the State Commission deems it essential to engage field commanders and other authorized individuals who commanded Armenia's military actions before 1994 and possess sufficient information about the locations of mass graves in the process of searching for the burial sites of missing Azerbaijani citizens.
The State Commission reaffirms its willingness to collaborate with the pertinent authorities of Armenia in facilitating the search for missing persons on both sides. This commitment is made with a focus on upholding the principles of accuracy, and transparency and fostering an atmosphere of mutual trust.
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