CoE calls Armenia to immediately return body of Azerbaijani soldier

It is the 15th day the Armenian Armed Forces refuses to return the dead body of the Azerbaijani soldier Chingiz Gurbanov, who was killed during the prevention of the Armenian sabotage on December 29, 2016.

Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland urged Armenia to return the body of the killed serviceman, without delay.

"The Council of Europe does not have a direct role in the negotiations, and always refers to, and supports the role of, the OSCE Minsk-Group," said Jagland in the statement. "However, we are concerned about the humanitarian aspects of the conflict. I am aware that the violations of the ceasefire on December 29 resulted in casualties, and that the Armenian Armed Forces are still holding the body of an Azerbaijani serviceman killed in the fighting,” he said.

Jagland noted he fully supported the Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group’s call for the return of human remains – in accordance with the agreements of the Astrakhan Summit of 2010 – bearing in mind the humanitarian nature of this issue.

A reconnaissance group of the Armenian Armed Forces attempted to violate the Azerbaijan-Armenia state border on December 29, 2016. The Armenian group found itself in the ambush of the Azerbaijani army while violating the borders and suffered heavy losses. During the fighting, Azerbaijani serviceman Chingiz Gurbanov went missing. Later, it was clarified that he was killed by the Armenian Armed Forces and his body remained on the territory controlled by the Armenian Armed Forces.

Azerbaijan’s State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing People issued on January 11 another call regarding the issue. The Commission noted in its statement that Armenia tries to justify the non-return of Azerbaijani serviceman’s body by giving reasons that defy any logic.

The State Commission appreciated the efforts of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs aimed at the repatriation of the body of Azerbaijani serviceman.

The statement noted that the Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949, which Armenia also joined and undertook to meet its requirements, prohibits to hold for any reason the bodies of the dead.

The Commission said given that such actions by Armenia have taken place earlier, such an inhumane act as prolonged failure to return the bodies of the victims has turned into a trend in this country.

The statement urged to halt inhumane activity of Armenia and to take necessary measures for compliance with the requirements of the Geneva Convention.

In addition, Azerbaijan’s Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson) Elmira Suleymanova sent a letter to the President of the ICRC Peter Maurer in connection with the return of the body of the killed soldier.

“The Armenian side tries to delay the process, declares that there is "investigation," while the mechanism and procedure for the return of bodies of dead soldiers is quite known to both parties, as well as to your organization,” she noted in the letter.

“We believe that this step of Armenia is a flagrant violation of universally recognized norms of international law, human rights, and requirements of the Geneva convention,” the ombudsperson noted.

The letter also stated that the Armenian side does not respect the ceasefire regime, existing since 1994, and regularly makes provocations, one of which was carried out on April 2016.

“Considering all mentioned above, as well as the expectation of the family of the soldier and of the country's population, we ask you, within the mandate of the ICRC and in accordance with international law, to assist in the return of the body of the soldier Chingiz Gurbanov,” the letter concluded.