Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor presents the report on the fatalities in the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia (RA) and the Republic of Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh (RA/NK) in the first half of 2019.

The information obtained from official and non-official sources is presented in the report.

According to the data of HCA Vanadzor, 23 death cases were recorded in the Armed Forces of the RA and the RA/NK in the first half of 2019. 31 death cases were recorded during the same time period of last year. 

11 of them occurred as a result of car crash, 3 occurred as a result of health problems, 3 occurred as a result of murder, 3 occurred as a result of suicide or inciting suicide, 2 occurred as a result of ceasefire violation, 1 occurred as a result of accident. 

During the first half of 2019, as compared to the same time period of 2018, death cases caused by health problems and cases qualified as suicide decreased more than twice in the Armed Forces of the RA and the RA/NK. At the same time, death cases caused by car crash increased by 5. 

It is noteworthy that after September 2018 until May 2019 included, no death case caused by ceasefire violation was recorded in the Armed Forces of the RA and RA/NK. And it was only in June 2019, for the first time in 9 months, that 2 servicemen’s death cases were recorded as a result of ceasefire violation. As compared to the same data of the first half of 2018, it can be seen that this year, death cases caused by ceasefire violations decreased more than twice. The number of murder cases remains the same. 

15 out of 23 death cases occurred on the RA territory, 7 occurred on the RA/NK territory, the geographic location of 1 case is not mentioned.

There are official messages on 13 out of 23 cases, official confirmation on 4 cases was made only after being published by mass media, no official information was disseminated on 6 cases.  

Official structures, namely, RA Defense Ministry, RA Prosecutor General’s Office and RA Investigative Committee, consider 11 cases to be related to military service. 

HCA Vanadzor does not classify death cases as those related and those not related to military service and holds, that irrespective of the condition whether the incident occurred inside or outside the military unit, it should be classified as a loss that occurred during military service, since the person was registered as serving his military service.

Criminal cases were initiated on 17 out of 23 death cases. 

Other statistical data and details are presented in the REPORT

Updated Information on the Death Cases in the Armed Forces of the RA and NK in the First Half of 2019