Baku court to resume trial of Armenian war criminals accused of torturing Azerbaijani POWs on June 30 - (UPDATED)
A court in Baku today resumed the criminal trial of Armenian war criminals Ludwig Mkrtchyan and Alyosha Khosrovyan, accused of torturing Azerbaijani prisoners of war and committing other offenses during the First Karabakh War, News.Az reports.
Presided over by Judge Elbey Allahverdiyev of the Baku Military Court, the hearing featured testimony from victims, who described being tortured by the accused.
Defendant Alyosha Khosrovyan later took the stand, admitting to unlawfully crossing Azerbaijan’s border on two occasions. “I acknowledge partial guilt for the charges brought against me. I crossed into Azerbaijan twice without authorization,” he stated.
Khosrovyan also mentioned that he understands some Azerbaijani: “I know a few words, though I can’t speak fluently. I used to have Azerbaijani neighbors in Gafan before they relocated to Azerbaijan.”
According to the investigation, Mkrtchyan, an Armenian citizen born in 1969, was involved in taking an Azerbaijani hostage in July 1991 in the "Ballija" forest near Khojaly, and another in the village of Tapgaragoyunlu, Goranboy district, on September 13, 1999. The second hostage was taken to Yerevan, held in a military facility, and used as an interpreter during interrogations by Armenian intelligence services. Both individuals were subjected to torture by Mkrtchyan, who had conspired with members of armed nationalist Armenian groups from both the Nagorno-Karabakh region and Armenia.
Further investigation revealed that 11 Azerbaijani captives were tortured at various times in the Khojavand and Aghdara districts, in Shusha prison, and in Yerevan. One Azerbaijani serviceman was killed after being shot with automatic gunfire.
Ludwig Mkrtchyan was apprehended by Azerbaijani forces on October 20, 2020, in the Malikjanli village of the Fuzuli district.
Investigators also uncovered crimes committed by Alyosha Khosrovyan, an Armenian citizen born in 1967, who, along with Mkrtchyan, inflicted torture on Azerbaijani prisoners.
Khosrovyan was found to have tortured five Azerbaijanis during their captivity, subjecting them to inhumane and degrading treatment.
One such victim, a soldier captured in April 1994 from military unit N of the Ministry of Defense, was held in a house in Mysmina (Aghbulag) village, Khojavand district. He was forced into hard labor to build a residence for Babayan Samvel Andranikovich, the so-called “Defense Minister” of the self-proclaimed “Nagorno-Karabakh Republic,” and suffered multiple physical injuries.
Khosrovyan was especially brutal toward Azerbaijani soldiers captured in 1993–1994 and held in Shusha prison, where they endured severe beatings, starvation, psychological abuse, and physical pain.
He was captured by Azerbaijani troops on October 3, 2020, while conducting reconnaissance missions in Azerbaijani territory.
Both Mkrtchyan and Khosrovyan face serious charges under several articles of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code, including Article 113 (torture), Article 115.2 (violation of war laws and customs), Article 279.1 (formation of illegal armed groups), and Article 318.2 (illegal border crossing). They have been formally charged and remanded into custody by court decision.
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