ICRC representatives haven’t yet visited Rashid Beglaryan in Azeri custody

YEREVAN, AUGUST 3, ARMENPRESS. Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) haven’t yet visited Rashid Beglaryan, the Nagorno-Karabakh resident arrested by Azerbaijan, ICRC Armenia communications manager Zara Amatuni told ARMENPRESS.

Amatuni added that they are following the case and are taking relevant steps through dialogue within the framework of the ICRC powers to ensure certain progress in this issue.

Speaking about Vagif Khachatryan, the other man from Nagorno-Karabakh who’s also under arrest in Azerbaijan, Amatuni said that the ICRC visited him on July 29, the day of his arrest.

“Our delegates, including our doctor, visited Vagif Khachatryan in Baku in accordance with our procedures, to get information on his condition, check his state of health and review the detention conditions,” Amatuni added.

The Nagorno-Karabakh authorities had initially announced that Rashid Beglaryan, a resident of Nagorno-Karabakh, accidentally crossed into Azerbaijani-held territory while intoxicated and was subsequently arrested on August 1. However, the Nagorno-Karabakh prosecutor’s office later said that Beglaryan was actually kidnapped by Azerbaijani servicemembers while walking towards Armenia.

The other arrested Nagorno-Karabakh resident, 68-year-old Vagif Khachatryan, was kidnapped by Azerbaijani border guards during his ICRC-facilitated medical evacuation to Armenia through the blockaded Lachin Corridor on July 29.

Khachatryan faces fabricated war crime charges in Azerbaijan.

On August 2, prominent Armenian attorney Siranush Sahakyanruled outdue process in Azerbaijan regarding Vagif Khachatryan. She said that the kidnapping ofVagif Khachatryanby Azerbaijan constitutes extraordinary rendition in terms of international law.

The Nagorno-Karabakh resident’s kidnapping has beencondemnedby the Armenian foreign ministry as a war crime.

Vagif Khachatryan’s daughterrevealedearlier this week that the Azeri border guards threatened the ICRC staff with force at the illegal checkpoint in Lachin Corridor. She denied the charges against her father and asked for international support to achieve his release.