The Center for International and Comparative Law has submitted a report to the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination ahead of its 107th session. The report outlines Azerbaijan’s policy of racial discrimination and hatred against ethnic Armenians, which has significantly intensified following the 44-day war in 2020. It highlights incidents of violence against Armenians motivated by ethnic hatred and the state-supported impunity surrounding these acts. The Azerbaijani authorities have not only failed to condemn or investigate these acts of violence, but have, at the highest levels, allowed such behavior to continue. The brutal attacks, torture, and executions carried out by Azerbaijani officials and military personnel against Armenians point to the ongoing and full-scale implementation of Azerbaijan’s policy of racial discrimination and violence against ethnic Armenians, particularly those residing in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The report presents cases of ethnically motivated violence and extrajudicial executions committed against Armenians. One such example is the extrajudicial killing of 73-year-old Benik Hakobyan and 25-year-old Yuri Adamyan in the northern part of Hadrut. Two videos depicting their execution were circulated.
In the first video, the men are seen surrendering their weapons and military equipment at the command of an unidentified Azerbaijani soldier. Following the instructions of a Russian-speaking Azerbaijani soldier, the two men raise their hands and slowly approach the soldiers. The video shows one of the soldiers forcing Hakobyan to the ground. It ends with Hakobyan screaming in agony.
The second video is even more disturbing. Hakobyan and Adamyan are seen sitting on a pile of firewood, wrapped in the flags of Armenia and the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh). The video ends with an Azerbaijani soldier giving the order to fire at the unarmed captives. After gunshots to the head, both men collapse to the ground, but the shooting does not stop.
The Azerbaijani government denied the authenticity of the videos, accusing the Armenian government of “staging” the executions. However, several independent investigative networks and experts confirmed that the footage was not staged, but rather constitutes a blatant violation of international human rights law.
The report emphasizes that the extrajudicial execution of prisoners of war violates multiple international human rights treaties. Azerbaijan must not only be held responsible for creating the conditions that allowed such violence but must also hold accountable the soldiers who violated international mandates and committed these crimes.
In light of the findings presented in the report, the Center for International and Comparative Law urges the Committee to call on the Azerbaijani government to: