  U.S. Congressman: Azerbaijan unjustly pardons criminal September 1, 2012 - 10:48 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - U.S. Congressman Brad Sherman, a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement regarding Azerbaijan’s freeing of Ramil Safarov: “I am deeply dismayed by the Hungarian government’s decision to release an Azeri military officer who was sentenced to life imprisonment for murdering an Armenian officer in cold blood in Budapest in 2004. The convicted criminal was wrongfully and unjustly pardoned and set free by Azerbaijan’s President immediately after arriving in Azerbaijan. I stand by our friend and ally Armenia in her ongoing quest for peace and security for her citizens. I call on the Azeri government to bring this individual to justice instead of freeing a convicted criminal. Baku’s actions demonstrate a stubborn refusal to avoid threats against its neighbor.”   Gurgen Margaryan On February 19, 2004, Lieutenant of the Armenian Armed Forces Gurgen Margaryan, 26, was hacked to death, while asleep, by a fellow Azerbaijani participant, lieutenant Ramil Safarov, in Budapest during a three-month English language course in the framework of Partnership for Peace NATO-sponsored program. In accordance with Budapest District Court sentence dated April 13, 2006, Ramil Safarov was life imprisoned for murdering the Armenian officer. Partner news  Top stories “The above mentioned NGOs’ participation in the forum is only possible as a part of Azerbaijani delegation,” ANP said. The military academy will be named after legendary commanders of Armenian origin Alexander Suvorov and Valerian Mandatov. French Co-Chair of the OSCE Minsk Group Jacques Faure said the co-chairs are not planning a visit to Nagorno Karabakh. Last month, renowned Turkish pianist Fazıl Say was also handed a suspended 10-month prison sentence for blasphemy.   Partner news |  Latest news 17 Pakistani children burnt to death as school bus explodes  Many vehicles in energy-starved Pakistan are powered by relatively cheap compressed natural gas and cylinder blasts are common.Radiation leak reported after incident at Japanese lab Researchers and others who were engaged in experiments and other work at the laboratory may have been exposed to radiation.Islamist group Boko Haram camps destroyed in Nigeria Some 2,000 soldiers were deployed to the region last week, in the biggest campaign to date against Boko Haram.U.S. says Syria conflict threatens Lebanon’s stability Syria has been locked in an increasingly bloody civil war since demonstrations broke out against the Assad regime in March 2011. |
