On 29 September 2020, taking the view that the current situation gives rise to a risk of serious violations of the Convention, the European Court of Human Rights (sitting as a Chamber of seven judges) decided to apply Rule 39 of the Rules of Court. With a view to preventing such violations and pursuant to Rule 39, the Court called upon both Azerbaijan and Armenia to refrain from taking any measures, in particular military action, which might entail breaches of the Convention rights of the civilian population, including putting their life and health at risk, and to comply with their engagements under the Convention, notably in respect of Article 2 (right to life) and Article 3 (prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment) of the Convention.
The Court also invited both Contracting Parties to inform it, as soon as possible, of the measures taken to comply with their obligations.
Measures under Rule 39 of the Rules of Court are decided in connection with proceedings before the Court, without prejudging any subsequent decisions on the admissibility or merits of the case. The Court grants such requests only on an exceptional basis, when the applicants would otherwise face a real risk of irreversible harm. For further information see the factsheet on interim measures.
The request for interim measures was lodged by the Government of Armenia (Armenia v. Azerbaijan, no. 42521/20: link to the press release).
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