Azernews.Az

Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov convicted earlier in Hungary was extradited to his home country on Friday and shortly thereafter he was pardoned by an order of President Ilham Aliyev.

Safarov, 35, was handed down a life sentence without the right to a parole for 30 years on charges of killing Armenian serviceman Gurgen Markaryan, who insulted the Azerbaijani flag during a NATO course in Budapest. The Azerbaijani public condemned the Hungarian court's harsh sentence, which was pronounced in April 2006 after a lengthy trial.

At the Baku airport he was welcomed by senior Justice Ministry officials, journalists and family members. The presidential order was read out to Safarov.

Speaking to journalists, he said: "I'm happy to have returned to Azerbaijan. Sometimes a man faces such moments in his life which are impossible to express in words. First and foremost, on behalf of my family members and myself, I express my deepest and sincere gratitude to the President, Supreme Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev for his humane move, for his signing the order to end my imprisonment."

Safarov noted that he hasn't yet made a specific decision on his future activities, but did not rule out further military service.

Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry appreciates the cooperation from the Hungarian side for Safarov's return to his homeland, the ministry's spokesman Elman Abdullayev told Trend news agency.

"Azerbaijan has been working in this direction for some time and we greatly appreciate the cooperation of Hungary in this matter," Abdullayev said.