Azerbaijan calls on Armenia to disclose data on 4,010 missing persons
To date, 4,010 citizens are officially registered as missing in Azerbaijan. The country's authorities are calling on Yerevan to provide accurate information on burial sites to end years of uncertainty.
Tunzale Melikova2 min read
Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan and Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration, Hikmet Hajiyev, stated in connection with the International Day of the Disappeared that the fate of 4,010 Azerbaijani citizens listed as missing remains a profound humanitarian and national issue.
According to Hajiyev, the matter is under the constant attention of President Ilham Aliyev. Currently, search operations are underway in the liberated territories, mass graves are being uncovered, and discovered remains are being identified through forensic and DNA analysis. To date, 32 mass graves have been found, and the identities of 328 individuals have been established.
The Assistant to the President emphasized that despite difficult terrain, the presence of mines, and unexploded ordnance, search operations continue using all available resources. "Armenia must provide accurate information on the fate of missing Azerbaijanis, including their burial sites. This is primarily a humanitarian duty necessary to end the long-standing uncertainty for their families," Hajiyev noted.
Political analyst Kamran Mammadli noted in a commentary that the issue of missing persons is one of the largest unresolved humanitarian aspects since the First Karabakh War. He stressed that while Azerbaijan is conducting systematic work on search and identification, similar steps are expected from the Armenian side.
“If information about missing Azerbaijanis exists in the archives, military structures, or with former Armenian military personnel, why is it not being provided? This is not about political polemics, but about human lives,” the expert stated. In his opinion, providing this data could become an important mechanism for building trust within the peace process.
Mammadli added that arguments regarding the lack of documents or lost data after 30 years are not convincing, as military operations are accompanied by reports, maps, and witness testimonies. The expert suggested involving international organizations, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross, to assist in obtaining information, emphasizing that establishing the truth is an essential element of sustainable peace.
Source: musavat.com
