Attempts by Baku to initiate international prosecution against Armenians included in Azerbaijan’s “black lists” will fail, but their detention in third countries with subsequent transfer to Azerbaijan is possible, international law expert Siranush Sahakyan told a press conference in Yerevan on Monday, October 9, Sputnik Armenia reports.
Earlier, Reuters cited a “top diplomat” as saying that Azerbaijan has a list of about two hundred Armenians from Artsakh whom it wants to detain on various charges.
“On the basis of political cases, it is impossible to achieve criminal prosecution of innocent people, but Baku can do this on a bilateral basis, it is possible,” Sahakyan said.
In this context, she cited as an example the detention of Israeli blogger Alexander Lapshin, who was handed over to Azerbaijan by the Belarusian authorities.
At the same time, Sahakyan believes that Yerevan’s efforts to bring to justice those accused of war crimes against Armenians are insufficient. She noted that Armenia must, through international organizations and Interpol, ensure that the Azerbaijani soldiers are placed on the international wanted list and detained. In particular, she mentioned the execution of unarmed Armenian soldiers in the southern province of Syunik.
“We need to work intensively and achieve the arrest of Azerbaijani criminals. But the process should not be public,” Sahakyan noted.
On October 2, 2022, a video spreading online showed Azerbaijani soldiers shooting a group of Armenian prisoners of war at point-blank range. The Armenian authorities called on the international community to bring Azerbaijan to justice. The representations of Armenia in international judicial structures submitted appeals to the ECHR and the International Court of Justice.
PANArmenian.net
