“Azerbaijan will once again try to kidnap people at the Armenian border. There have been instances in the past where they have kidnapped people with mental health issues and presented them as being saboteur-terrorists,” Azeri studies expert and political analyst Angela Elibegova told reporters regarding the case surrounding Armenian citizen Karen Ghazaryan, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison in Azerbaijan.
According to her, the Azeri authorities needed Ghazaryan as a propaganda tool. “We need to pay more attention to the people residing near the border, and perhaps carry out activities aimed towards increasing security and information. The Azeri authorities want to take as many civilians as possible so that the issue is raised to the exchange of saboteurs. We cannot allow that to happen.”
Two Azeri saboteurs are carrying out their punishment in Artsakh for murder and other serious crimes. Karen Ghazaryan is not a prisoner of war as Azerbaijan presents him to be. Due to mental health issues, he did not serve in the Armenian army.
Angela Elibegova expressed hope that the European Court of Human Rights will record soon enough that there was an issue of anti-Armenian sentiment with regard to Karen Ghazaryan’s case. “It is not understandable for the international community as to why we cannot carry out humanitarian missions with Azerbaijan, which is a country that promotes anti-Armenian sentiment starting in preschool, and one that kidnaps civilians and tries them as saboteurs. Azerbaijan pretends to be peace-loving, and the international community needs to understand that.”
Luiza Sukiasyan
