Within the framework of the fact-finding mission of the Artsakh Human Rights Defender, it has been established that the person seen in the circulated video, subjected to inhumane treatment by Azerbaijani armed forces, is 80-year-old Johnik Tevosyan, a resident of the city of Shushi. Artsakh Ombudsman Artak Beglaryan wrote about this on his Facebook page.
“He had not managed to leave Shushi and fell under the control of the Azerbaijani armed forces.
Members of Johnik Tevosyan’s family have appealed to our staff, asking for assistance in the matter of protecting their relative’s rights. We have transmitted the available data to the International Committee of the Red Cross, requesting that the protection of the life and other rights of the citizen of the Republic of Artsakh be ensured as quickly as possible, in accordance with the standards of international humanitarian law.
This video once again demonstrates the systemic and deep-rooted nature of the anti-Armenian sentiments prevailing in Azerbaijan, which are fully encouraged by the state. This is one episode in a large chain of anti-Armenianism and war crimes, and it must be sadly noted that such episodes, each more brutal than the last, are not only directly welcomed by Azerbaijani society, but also continue due to the blindness, deafness and muteness of the international community.
Together with the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia, we shall also present this case to the relevant international bodies and shall be consistent in achieving proper assessments,” he wrote.
