Baku: The review session of court hearings on the criminal case against Ruben Vardanyan, an Armenian citizen charged with multiple criminal offenses, continued on February 17. The charges include torture, mercenary activity, violation of the laws and customs of warfare, terrorism, and financing terrorism, among other offenses according to the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

According to Azeri-Press News Agency, the open hearings were held at the Baku Military Court, presided over by Judge Zeynal Agayev with a panel of judges Anar Rzayev and Jamal Ramazanov, and reserve judge Gunel Samadova. The accused was provided with an interpreter in Russian and legal representation. The session was attended by victims, their legal successors, representatives, and prosecutors responsible for public prosecution.

At the beginning of the hearing, Ruben Vardanyan and his defense attorney, Avraam Berman, requested a private meeting, which the court granted, resulting in a recess. Following the private meeting, they filed a motion to contest the composition of the court. Prosecutors Vusal Aliyev and Fuad Musayev argued that a similar motion had been previously considered and decided upon, and they requested that this motion not be upheld due to lack of specific grounds.

The victims also requested that the motion remain unexamined. After deliberation, the court announced that the appeal would indeed remain unexamined.

During the hearing, the indictment was announced, implicating the Armenian state and several high-profile individuals in military aggression and acts of terror against Azerbaijan. Specific incidents included sustained attacks by Armenian forces on Azerbaijani military posts between September 12 and 14, 2022, leading to casualties among Azerbaijani military personnel and a civilian.

The indictment also highlighted the arming of the so-called ‘Nagorno-Karabakh Republic’ by the Armenian state and Ruben Vardanyan, with various military assets and equipment. The charges against Vardanyan span multiple articles of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code, covering acts such as planning and waging a war of aggression, deportation, forced displacement, persecution, torture, mercenary activity, terrorism, and illegal entrepreneurship, among others.

Presiding judge Zeynal Aghayev explained the charges and legal implications to Vardanyan, who refused to answer questions as a gesture of objection. The next court hearing is scheduled for February 25.