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Akbar Novruz

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On September 5, the Baku Military Court heard the statements of Levon Balayan to the preliminary investigation in his criminal case, along with other documents related to him, Azernews reports.

Balayan stated he was drafted into military service in January 1995 and served as a soldier in units stationed in Shusha, Khankendi, and Khojaly until 1998. He could not recall the unit numbers but confirmed that he was issued an "AKS-74" automatic weapon. According to his testimony, the units he served in were equipped with Russian-made "T-55" and "T-72" heavy battle tanks and "BMP-1" and "BMP-2" infantry fighting vehicles. He also noted that Levon Mnatsakanyan, one of the senior commanders (currently in custody), frequently visited the units to check their combat readiness.

Balayan added that on September 20, 2020, he was forcibly called up for "service" by the "Khankendi city military commissariat" and participated in battles on the "3rd line of defense" near the Sugovushan settlement during the first days of the 44-day war, from September 27 to October 2. He served in a battalion named "Alasha."

He further testified that on May 1, 2023, he joined one of the armed formations created and financed by Ruben Vardanyan in the then-occupied territories of Azerbaijan. Since then, he has received a monthly salary of 170,000 drams (approximately 700 USD) via a card from "Artsakhbank," an Armenian bank. On September 20, he was detained by Azerbaijani military personnel.

The trial continues as part of Azerbaijan's ongoing judicial proceedings against citizens of Armenia accused of crimes including war crimes, crimes against peace and humanity, preparation and conduct of a war of aggression, genocide, violations of the laws and customs of war, terrorism, financing of terrorism, forcible seizure of power, and other serious offenses.