Azeri officer admits killing Armenian with axe-MTI

Azeri officer admits killing Armenian with axe-MTI

Reuters
11/23/04 11:51 ET

BUDAPEST, Nov 23 (Reuters) – An Azeri officer who killed an Armenian
with an axe at a Budapest military academy pleaded guilty in court
on Tuesday, saying he took revenge for Armenian attacks on Azeris,
Hungarian news agency MTI reported.

Former Soviet republics Armenia and Azerbaijan declared an uneasy
ceasefire after going to war in 1988, part of a long and bitter
territorial dispute.

“It was not my plan to be so cruel, savage,” 27-year-old Ramil Safrov
Sahib told the court.

When asked why he almost severed the head of the victim he said
“because they did the same to 8,000 people of ours.”

In February, Sahib entered the Armenian’s room, stabbed him several
times with a knife and struck him repeatedly with an axe, almost
severing his head.

The pair were on an English language course run under the auspices
of NATO’s Partnership for Peace.

Sahib was charged with committing premeditated murder with extreme
cruelty, and faces possible life imprisonment if found guilty,
a Budapest Capital Court press official told Reuters.