Baku: Determining the fate of Azerbaijani citizens who went missing during the First Karabakh War remains one of the gravest humanitarian consequences of the conflict. Although new opportunities to find answers to these questions emerged after Azerbaijan liberated its territories from occupation in 2020, a great deal of work still remains to be done. Azerbaijan's efforts to search for missing persons, the mass graves discovered in the territories liberated from occupation, DNA identifications, and Armenia's failure to provide information about burial sites remain among the key issues affecting the resolution of the problem.
According to Azeri-Press News Agency, the State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons has registered 4,010 Azerbaijani citizens as missing persons due to Armenia's military aggression. Of these, 328 individuals have been identified through DNA analysis of human remains found during excavations in the liberated territories. This indicates some progress, yet the fate of a significant number of individuals remains unresolved.
The figure of 4,010 is not merely a statistic. Behind this number are families who have been waiting for answers for decades, including elderly parents and siblings who remain only in childhood memories. The list of missing persons includes both military personnel and civilians, highlighting that the issue is not solely about servicemen who went missing on the battlefield. According to the State Commission, efforts to determine the fate of missing persons encompass information about both servicemen and civilians who were taken prisoner or hostage during the conflict.
The search for missing persons involves several stages: collecting information, examining witness testimonies, identifying presumed burial sites, conducting searches and excavations, exhuming human remains, carrying out forensic and anthropological examinations, and DNA analyses to establish identities. The process of determining a missing person's fate does not conclude with merely finding a grave.
The State Commission of the Republic of Azerbaijan on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons has been operational since 1993, with the liberation of territories in 2020 creating new opportunities for determining the fate of missing persons. At an international conference in June 2026, Secretary of the State Commission Gazanfar Ahmadov announced that new-generation unmanned aerial vehicles and ground-penetrating geophysical radar (GPR) systems would be used for rapid mapping of large areas and detecting hidden graves, moving beyond reliance on witness testimonies and physical excavations alone.
As part of cooperation between the State Commission and the ICMP, an Online Inquiry Center has been launched for electronic management of information regarding missing persons. This platform allows citizens to submit new information, attach photographs and documents, and share geographical coordinates of presumed burial sites. According to the State Commission, the unified electronic database accelerates information exchange between relevant state institutions and enhances the efficiency of search, excavation, and identification processes.
DNA identification is a crucial element in determining the fate of missing persons. Over the years, biological reference samples have been collected from families of the missing. In 2024, the International Committee of the Red Cross announced that approximately 11,000 biological samples had been collected from families across 72 districts of Azerbaijan. Following the establishment of a specialized Genetic Laboratory for missing persons cases in Azerbaijan in 2022, it became possible to process about 10,900 family reference samples.
Currently, 32 mass graves have been discovered, including locations in Kalbajar, Khojavand, Shusha, Fuzuli, Khojaly, Aghdara, and Aghdam. The largest number of mass graves was reportedly found in Khojaly. These discoveries signify the beginning of complex investigations involving securing the area, conducting excavations, documenting remains, and performing forensic and DNA analyses.
Armenia's failure to provide information about the fate of missing Azerbaijanis and the locations of burial sites is a significant obstacle. Azerbaijan has been raising this issue on international platforms, with President Ilham Aliyev emphasizing the humanitarian nature of the matter. The inclusion of a provision concerning missing persons in the initialed peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 2025 further highlights the importance of resolving this issue.
Families of missing persons continue to wait for answers, with stories like those of Hamaya Mehdiyeva, Fati Mustafayeva, and the Mammadov family illustrating the personal impact of the ongoing search. Despite advancements in technology and international cooperation, the success of these efforts heavily relies on the exchange of information, including data held by Armenia.
The Azerbaijani state remains committed to determining the fate of its missing citizens, continuing searches despite difficult terrain, weather conditions, and mine threats. However, information from Armenia is crucial to expedite the process and provide closure to families waiting for over three decades. Each of the 4,010 missing persons represents a name behind which lies a family seeking answers.