Azeri experts catch Baku in lie: elderly Armenian captive not infiltrated spy

PanARMENIAN.Net - Azerbaijan’s capture of an elderly Armenian, dubbed a member of an “Armenian commando group” came as another one in a series of increased tensions at the frontline, BBC Russian service said.

As Azeri media claimed earlier, “a 65 year-old member of an Armenian commando group, injured in a diversion attempt, was detained at the contact line near the village of Alibeili, Tovuz region.”

The villagers last saw Khojoyan near the settlement of Maflar. Their description of the captive matched the photo of a man posted on Azeri websites.

Baku is describing the elderly Armenian as a subversive agent, which does not mean it's true, Azeri analyst Zardusht Alizadeh said, citing previous cases where Armenian captives were accused of espionage with no proof at hand.

Uzeir Jafarov, an Azerbaijani military analyst, also dismissed the official Azerbaijani version of Khojoyan’s capture. “That man has nothing to do with the sabotage group,” he told RFE/RL’s Azerbaijani service. “He is an old man who seems to have health problems. There is not a single sign that the Defense Ministry’s claims are true.”

“The Defense Ministry had better explain why Khojoyan was caught by ordinary [Azerbaijani] villagers,” said Jafarov. “What were the Azerbaijani soldiers stationed in that area doing?”

Over the last 2 days, Azeri Ministry of Defense stood by its claims that Khojoyan is a saboteur. However, at present, Baku has slightly changed its version of the events. The elderly man is now described as a part of the commando group - a guide well familiar with the area – captured in a botched diversion attempt.

The head of the village of Alibeili, however, refuted the report, noting that Khojoyan was spotted by one of the villagers and further detained by Azeri soldiers who took him to Baku.

Azeris remain true to their traditional scenario of capturing an Armenian, a soldier or nor, coming up with a suitable legend, and interviewing him to “prove” the legend. Nothing’s different this time. ANS TV channel, greedy for such conversations, interviewed a 77-year-old Armenian hostage.

“ICRC representatives travelled to the village to clarify some details about Khojoyan and promised to send an inquiry to their colleagues in Baku,” the village administrator Kamo Chobanyan told Aysor.am. As he noted, Khojoyan’s grandchild handed a letter to the ICRC representatives.