Nagorno-Karabakh: Armenia and Azerbaijan begin first exchange of prisoners
Armenian soldiers along the road near the border between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, Sunday, November 8, 2020. AP Photo
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2 min
A fragile hope for a political settlement appears around Nagorno-Karabakh.
By releasing each of the prisoners, Baku and Yerevan are showing concrete signs of goodwill.
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With our correspondent in Baku
,
Emmanuel Grynszpan
34 days after the end of the fighting, we are witnessing the first signs of reconciliation between
Armenia
and Azerbaijan.
On Monday evening, prisoners of war were exchanged on an all-for-all basis.
44 Armenian prisoners were able to return home against 14 Azerbaijanis.
Russian peacekeepers acted as the go-between, and the prisoners crossed borders by air on Russian planes.
But big doubts persist about the all-against-all formula.
An Armenian official claims Azerbaijan held
100 prisoners in early December
.
In addition, a large number of soldiers are still missing, especially on the Armenian side, because many soldiers disappeared when Yerevan's troops retreated in the face of the Azerbaijani offensive.
On the other hand, a humanitarian source in Baku confirmed to RFI on Tuesday that the list of prisoners of war would grow even longer because
an Armenian pocket
was taken over this weekend by the Azerbaijani army.
Meanwhile, Baku announced on Monday the arrest of four Azerbaijani soldiers, two accused of "
insulting the bodies of Armenian soldiers who died during the hostilities
" and the two others of "
destroying tombstones belonging to Armenians in a cemetery
”located in the area where the fighting was taking place.
An investigation was opened and the Azerbaijani Prosecutor's Office denounced acts "
unacceptable and contrary to the mentality of the Azerbaijani people
".
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Armenia
Azerbaijan
Nagorno-Karabakh
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