David Babayan: Baku's proposal to exchange Armenian serviceman for Azerbaijani raiders is a regular provocation

 Azerbaijan's proposal to exchange Armenian serviceman Arsen Baghdasaryan for Azerbaijani raiders Shahbaz Guliyev and Dilham Askerov is a regular provocation, 
Spokesman of Nagorno-Karabakh's President David Babayan told ArmInfo. 

"I consider this a provocation, as these people were not conscripts or civilians who accidentally crossed the border. These persons were trying to organize terror attack in Nagorno Karabakh. They are 
criminals who conducted a number of crimes on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh including murder. You know well that the court process on their case was open and transparent and representatives of 
a number of international organizations followed it", Babayan stressed. 

At the same time he emphasized that the speculation on this issue is display of fascism and racism, as the Azerbaijani authorities are obliged to transfer Armenian serviceman to the Armenian side. 

Earlier Azerbaijani media outlets reported that Ismail Akhundov, Head of the Working Group of the Azerbaijani State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons, said the State Commission has 
urged the ICRC to speed up efforts to immediately release Askerov and Guliyev, as well as to prepare and submit an agreement on 
repatriation of hostages for discussion of the parties.  "At the moment, this issue is being discussed with the ICRC," Akhundov said. 

To recall, on 29 June 2014, Shahbaz Jalal oghli Guliyev, Dilham Gardashkhan oghli Askerov and Hasan Hasanov illegally penetrated into 
the territory of NKR having with then arms and ammunition and attempted a sabotage attack.  They were spying and even kidnapped 
minor Smbat Tsakanayn, a citizen of NKR on 4 July, who was later found with deadly wounds to the head.  Afterwards, on 11 July, on the 
Vardenis-Karvachar road, Hasanov murdered a resident of Yerevan Sargis Abrahamyan (born in 1971) and wounded Karine Davtyan, a 
resident of Dzoraghbyur village on the grounds of national hatred. He was killed showing armed resistance to the Armenian forces. The other 
two raiders were arrested.  Shahbaz Guliyev, 46, and Dilham Askerov, 54, were charged under the NKR Criminal Code's Article 316 (spying), 
Article 350 part 2 (violation of the NKR's border by an organized group), Article 245 part 3 (illegal carrying of arms and ammunition), 
Article 129 part 3 point 1 (kidnapping, actions against a minor with the use of arms), Article 103 part 2 points 3,7,14 (murder combined 
with kidnapping by an organized group out of ethnic hatred) and Articles 33 and 103 part 1 point 14 (attempted murder of two or more 
people by an organized group out of ethnic hatred). On 29 Dec 2014, Dilham Askerov was sentenced to life imprisonment and Shahbaz Guliyev 
- to 22 years in jail. The Court of Appeal left the verdict unchanged.

To recall, former contract serviceman of the NKR Defense Army Arsen Baghdasaryan has been in Azeri captivity since Dec 26, 2014. The NKR 
Defense Ministry says that his behavior was far from being disciplined. When trying to escape court, Baghdasaryan crossed the 
line of contact into Azerbaijan. He is charged under Articles 29,120.2.7, 29,120.2.12 and 29,282.2 of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code.