Karabakh military personnel denied charges in a Baku court

Eight defendants in the case against the military-political leadership of Nagorno-Karabakh made their final statements before a Baku court. All pleaded not guilty to the war crimes charged against them. 

As reported by the " Caucasian Knot ," the trial of former Nagorno-Karabakh leaders accused of war crimes concluded on October 31. The prosecution requested life sentences for Arayik Harutyunyan, David Ishkhanyan, David Babayan, Levon Mnatsakanyan, and David Manukyan, and 16 to 20 years in prison for the others. On December 4, their lawyers  declared  their clients' guilt unproven and called on the court to acquit them.

The latest hearing at the Baku Military Court on December 11 began with prosecutors addressing the defendants' defense attorneys. Senior Assistant to the Prosecutor General Vusal Aliyev insisted that the court should consider the defendants as members of a criminal organization, despite the defense's dispute of their role in that capacity. 

"The leaders and members of these armed groups held important political and military positions in the illegal entities created in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan and in Armenia. This means that these groups were not random, arbitrary associations," Azertac quoted him as saying. 

Victims' representative Shaig Guseinov, in turn, recalled the weapons and ammunition found during searches of the defendants, stating that "virtually none of the defendants showed sincere remorse for their actions." Other victims' representatives also requested that the defendants be found guilty. 

The defendants' lawyers then took the stand again, presenting their arguments in response to the prosecutors' remarks. Specifically, the defense attorneys for Arkady Ghukasyan and David Manukyan again asked the court to acquit them: Manukyan's lawyer noted that his client had been following orders as a military service member. 

After the arguments concluded, the court granted the defendants the final statement. Eight defendants completed their statements before the end of the hearing. Levon Balayan and Madat Babayan stated that they did not kill anyone, only firing into the air. Melikset Pashayan denied the charge of participating in military operations near Aghdam. Erik Kazaryan cited his military service status from 2021 to 2023. Vasily Beglaryan emphasized that he was not a member of a criminal group. Garik Martirosyan, David Allahverdyan, and Gurgen Stepanyan also pleaded not guilty.

David Manukyan began his speech by making some counterarguments regarding the charges, but the court postponed the rest of his final statement until the next hearing on December 19.