Armenian soldiers continue to go AWOL
By Ayya Lmahamad
Armenian soldiers continue to flee from the army. Conscripts who refused to perform their duties were detained in Armenia, Day.az reported with the reference to Armenian media sources.
In particular, some soldiers refused to return to the military units, where they were serving, after their leave. They were detained as part of the initiated criminal case.
During the war, thousands of Armenian soldiers deserted and refused to fight because the Armenian army plundered by former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan was in a deplorable state. Videos were circulated on social networking platforms where soldiers swore obscenities at their commanders, who tried to send them to the battlefield.
It was reported in early February that Armenia’s law-enforcement agencies had launched criminal cases against over 10,000 people on charges of desertion during the war with Azerbaijan last year, namely for abandoning their combat positions and fleeing the battlefield.
It should be noted that in late January, a group of Armenians who joined the war as volunteers gathered outside the Armenian Defence Ministry demanding an explanation of why they, like the others, have not been paid compensation. One of the protesters said that about 2,700 people are in the same situation - they are not registered in any of the military units, but all of them took part in the hostilities.
The 44-day war between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 2020 ended with the signing of a trilateral peace deal by the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders.
The peace agreement stipulated the return of Azerbaijan's Armenian-occupied Kalbajar, Aghdam and Lachin regions. Before the signing of the deal, the Azerbaijani army had liberated around 300 villages, settlements, city centres and historic Shusha city. The Azerbaijani army declared a victory against the Armenian troops. The signed agreement obliged Armenia to withdraw its troops from the Azerbaijani lands that it has occupied since the early 1990s.
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Ayya Lmahamad is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @AyyaLmahamad
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