ECHR demands Azerbaijan’s explanation over Karen Petrosyan case

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) demands that the Azerbaijani government provide an explanation by September 26 concerning Baku’s official position on the repatriation of the body of Armenian citizen Karen Petrosyan killed in captivity and the reasons for delaying this process, Against Legal Arbitrariness NGO said in a statement.

Earlier a working group representing the interests of the family of Karen Petrosyan killed in Azerbaijani captivity applied to ECHR asking it to petition for the immediate repatriation of K. Petrosyan’s body under Rule 39 of the ECHR Rules. The working group members issued a statement after they filed an application to the ECHR.

“The repatriation of a deceased person’s body is a requirement of international law,” working group member, chairwoman of Against Legal Arbitrariness NGO Ms. Larisa Alaverdyan said, stressing that the illegal delay intensifies the sufferings of the innocent man’s family.

Human rights lawyers Cristina Gevorgyan, Ara Ghazaryan and Vahe Grigoryan and human rights activists Larisa Alaverdyan and Artak Zeynalyan represent the interests of the Petrosyans in ECHR.

As was reported earlier, Karen Petrosyan, a resident of Chinari village of Armenia’s Tavush province, was captured on August 7. He went to a nearby forest to gather wood, lost his way and crossed into Azerbaijani territory, which is also confirmed by initial reports of the Azerbaijani media. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry issued a statement on August 8 announcing the death of Chinari village resident Karen Petrosyan, 31, who crossed into Azerbaijan the day before and was captured. According to the Azerbaijani version, Karen Petrosyan allegedly “died of heart failure” in Baku. The circumstances of Petrosyan’s death raise serious doubts as to the cause of his death presented by Azerbaijan.