Last month, Azerbaijan exchanged Armenian convicts for mines in liberated Aghdam
Azerbaijan has handed over 15 Armenian prisoners in exchange of maps of land mines in its two recently-liberated regions.
The country’s Foreign Ministry reported on July 3 that Armenian submitted maps of 92,000 anti-tank and anti-personnel mines planted in Fuzuli and Zangilan regions during the years of occupation.
On the same day, Azerbaijan handed over 15 Armenian border violators who were sentenced to imprisonment but whose terms of punishment expired. The ministry described the release of prisoners as a “humanistic step”.
The ministry thanked the commander of Russian peacekeeping contingent stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh Rustam Muradov for mediating the exchange.
The returned prisoners had been sentenced to six months in prison for border violation but released for the expiration of their prison terms.
The men had illegally crossed the Azerbaijani border in December and faced charges of terrorism, organization of armed group, weapon possession and other grave crimes. However, these charges against them were dropped during the court session on July 2.
Azerbaijan detained 60 Armenian soldiers near liberated Hadrut settlement in anti-terrorist operation in December. The soldiers are being tried in four separate groups on charges including terrorism, illegal formation of an armed group, illegal armed possession, border violation.
Armenia considers all detained soldiers as prisoners of war, while Azerbaijan has stated that they do not fall under this category as they crossed the border after the signing of the peace deal. Azerbaijan in June exchanged 15 Armenian prisoners for maps of 97,000 landmines in the liberated Aghdam city. Yerevan had earlier denied the existence of such maps.
It should be noted that Aghdam, Fuzuli and Zangilan regions have the largest number of land mines. Fuzuli is a strategically-important city through which, all road infrastructure projects pass.
