Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 26
By Elchin Mehdiyev - Trend:
There is information that over 1,000 Azerbaijani citizens joined illegal armed formations abroad, including in Iraq and Syria, Deputy Chairman of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations of Azerbaijan Sayavush Heydarov said, Trend reports Dec. 26.
He said that 109 of them were brought to criminal responsibility, and there is information that more than 300 Azerbaijani citizens died and the citizenship of 310 persons was revoked.
Heydarov noted that women and children who left Azerbaijan remain in Iraq and were placed in various camps there.
“The negotiations are underway with the Iraqi government to return them to the country,” he said. “Twenty children who lost their parents have already been returned to Azerbaijan. They have been handed over to their close relatives, and this process continues.”
He noted that over the past year and a half, there has been no information about any Azerbaijani citizens joining participation in conflicts in Iraq and Syria, on the contrary, they started to flee those territories.
“A part of them was able to escape and is hiding in other countries,” he said. “Negotiations are underway with the respective countries on their establishment and taking the necessary measures.”