The ex-Defense Minister of Armenia does not rule out that his name is on the list of criminals demanded by Baku

Baku/21.09.23/Turan: In a surprising turn of events, former Armenian Defense Minister and leader of the Hayastan faction, Seyran Ohanyan, hinted at the possibility of being among those demanded for extradition by Azerbaijan in connection with historical atrocities. Speaking at the Yerablur military pantheon, Ohanyan defended the authorities of Nagorno-Karabakh for their willingness to engage in negotiations, even as Armenia distanced itself from Stepanakert's affairs amid ongoing tensions with Baku.

Ohanyan's comments came as Azerbaijan's political leadership has made the extradition of individuals allegedly involved in murders, torture, and other crimes against humanity a key condition for ending the local anti-terrorist operation.

Notably, Seyran Ohanyan, while serving as the commander of the 2nd Motorized Rifle Battalion of the 366th Regiment of the Russian Federation, was reportedly involved in the planning and destruction of the Azerbaijani city of Khojaly on February 25-26, 1992. The Khojaly massacre resulted in the tragic loss of 613 civilian lives.

Citing findings from the Memorial human rights organization, it is suggested that the actions of Armenian armed formations during the Khojaly events violated several international conventions, including the Geneva Convention, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the "Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency Situations and during Armed Conflicts."

The Khojaly tragedy has been etched into history, included in the encyclopedia "Atrocities, Massacres and War Crimes," published by the American scientific publishing house ABC-CLIO. Among those implicated in the genocide of the civilian population were several servicemen of the 366th Regiment, as well as members of Armenian armed formations.

The list of individuals allegedly involved in the brutal massacre also includes notable figures such as Armo Abrahamyan, the head of the Department of Internal Affairs of the city of Khankendi, Mavrik Ghukasyan, the head of the Department of Internal Affairs of the Askeran district, and Vitaly Balasanyan, the chairman of the Armenian Popular Front in Nagorno-Karabakh, among others. Furthermore, it is claimed that former separatist leaders who later became Presidents of Armenia, Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan, played a significant role in the leadership of ethnic cleansing in Karabakh and the killings of Azerbaijanis.

In a past interview with British journalist Thomas de Waal in 2000, Serzh Sargsyan, who later became President of Armenia, commented on the Khojaly events, saying, "Before Khojaly, the Azerbaijanis thought they were just joking with us. The Azerbaijanis thought that the Armenians were people who would not be able to raise their hand against the civilian population. It was necessary to turn it all around." Sargsyan reaffirmed his stance in a later interview with the BBC: "I expressed myself very clearly [in 2000] and I would express myself the same way today,"--0--