Azernews.Az

BAKU - Azeri defence ministry spokesman has warned Armenia that if it does not pull out of the occupied Azerbaijani territories, the region will plunge into "a very complicated situation".

"If Armenia does not withdraw from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, the region will plunge into a very complicated situation, and the responsibility will rest on Armenia’s shoulders," the head of the press service of Azeri Defense Ministry, Eldar Sabiroglu told press.

Concerning the stalling repatriation of the body of the Azerbaijani soldier who was killed during a skirmish with Armenian troops in June, Sabiroglu said that with the help of the International Committee of the Red Cross many appeals have been made to Armenia.

The Armenian government claimed earlier that due to the alleged absence of a formal appeal from Azerbaijan, it was not taking any action to repatriate Ibrahimov’s body. Further, Yerevan said in response to a query from the ICRC, which facilitates the handover of POWs, that the soldier’s corpse is neither in Armenia nor in Armenia-occupied Upper (Nagorno) Garabagh.

"Armenia is trying to hide the dead body [of Azeri soldier], and this action does not correspond to any human norms," Sabiroglu said.

He warned that the Armenia’s move could set a very bad precedent and the country may see the same attitude towards itself in future.

Mubariz Ibrahimov single-handedly shot four Armenian soldiers after they launched an offensive on Azerbaijan's positions early on June 19 in the Nagorno Garabagh region before he was killed. His dead body has not been returned to this day.

President Ilham Aliyev has conferred Azerbaijani National Hero Award to the soldier. The award marks Mubariz Ibrahimov’s exemplary bravery and outstanding service, state-run AzerTAj news agency reported.

Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in conflict for two decades. Armenian armed forces occupy 20 percent of Azerbaijan including the Nagorno Garabagh region and its seven surrounding districts, despite four standing UN resolutions on their unconditional pullout. The ceasefire accord was signed in 1994, but peace talks have been largely fruitless so far.