Death of soldiers in Armenia, JAMnews
Death of soldiers in Armenia
The Vanadzor office of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly said in the annual report in 2022, 54 deaths of military personnel were registered Armenian armed forces, which is 12 less than in 2021. However, for several reasons, the organization did not include in this number those who died on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan in September 13-14.
JAMnews added up the numbers of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly and the official numbers of those who died in the September clashes, and the number came to 275 people.
Thus, the data for 2022 seems unprecedented in terms of the number of soldiers killed in peacetime.
According to official data, as a result of large-scale hostilities in September 2022, 224 Armenians died, three of whom were civilians. According to the investigative committee, three other soldiers are considered missing. Speaking at the 77th session of the UN General Assembly, Pashinyan called these events ” unprovoked aggression author Azerbaijan against the sovereign territory of Armenia.”
After the end of hostilities, Azerbaijan returned seventeen prisoners and the bodies of 156 dead soldiers to Armenia.
Causes of military deaths
According to the HCA Vanadzor office, the causes of death of soldiers in non-combat situations were ceasefire violations, health problems, accidents and intentional killings. The organization summarized the data on the number of cases:
- health problems – 17 cases,
- accident – 17,
- ceasefire violation – 14,
- suicide – 6,
- murder – 6: of them 2 – intentional, 1 case of violation of the rules of use of a weapon, 1 – murder under unclear circumstances, 2 violations of the rules of military service,
- accidents – 2,
- violation of the rules for the handling of weapons, ammunition and dangerous substances – 1,
- mine explosion – 1.
The latest cause of death for soldiers in combat was a fire at a military unit in the Gegharkunik district on January 18, in which fifteen men died.
Most of those killed in non-combat conditions are conscript soldiers
In 2022, the majority of suicides and homicides – ten out of twelve – were active.
HCA Vanadzor’s office believes that such figures “indicate the presence of obscurity in the armed forces and the insufficient level of psychological work and attention to the personnel of military units.”
At the beginning of 2020, JAMnews and the Armenian human rights organization “Peace Dialogue” prepared a review “On the causes of death of the soldiers of the Armenian army and the investigation of these cases”.
“42% of cases were not reported”
The Vanadzor office of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly announced that 24 military deaths were not publicly reported and only 30 cases were officially disseminated.
This means that 42 percent of the cases were hidden from public view.
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Research: “Army reforms are ineffective”
The organization’s experts concluded that the number of cases and the causes of death point to “the ineffectiveness of the army’s reforms”. They remind that the priorities of these reforms in the government program 2021–2026 are:
- increasing the effectiveness of democratic and civilian control of the armed forces,
- Strengthening discipline in the armed forces,
- Protection of human rights in the armed forces,
- Best effort to eliminate obfuscation.
The human rights organization believes that improving the quality of military training is “crucial and essential” in terms of securing the rights and discipline of military personnel.
The Vanadzor office of the Helsinki Citizens’ Information Meeting also included in its report information about the death of ten unidentified NKR soldiers in 2022.
Death of conscripts in Armenia