ARMENIAN PRISONER OF WAR REPATRIATED UNDER ICRC AUSPICES YEREVAN
Noyan Tapan
Mar 27 2006
MARCH 27, NOYAN TAPAN. On 24 March an Armenian prisoner of war
detained in Azerbaijan was repatriated under the auspices of the
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). As Noyan Tapan was
informed by the ICRC, the operation took place on the road between the
Azerbaijani town of Gazakh and the Armenian town of Ijevan. The ICRC,
participating as a neutral intermediary and in accordance with its
mandate, facilitated the repatriation of the released prisoner at the
request of the Azerbaijani and the Armenian authorities. ICRC delegates
visited the prisoner of war before the operation to ensure he was
returning home of his own free will. Since the start of its activities
in connection with the Nagorny Karabakh conflict in 1992, the ICRC
has helped repatriate or transfer 656 people, and the organization
will support any similar operation in the future should the need arise.