February 19, 2011 - 13:45 AMT
Feb 19 marks 7th anniversary of Gurgen Margaryan murder

February 19 marks the 7th anniversary of the killing of Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan.

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 Margaryan. On February 22, 2007, Budapest Court rejected the Azerbaijani military officer's appeal against the verdict which excluded possibility of pardon for the initial 30 years. The appeal court ruled that the ruling brought by Budapest District Court against 30-year-old Ramil Safarov, should stand.