POLITICS
STATE COMMISSION ON POW, HOSTAGES AND MISSING PERSONS MAKES PUBLIC REPORT ON RESULTS OF ITS WORK IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2007
The State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons has made public a report on the results of its work in the first half of 2007.
According to the report, as a result of the investigations, the Commission has found out the fates of 109 persons whom it had registered as missing, and removed their names from the missing list.
Of them, 34 were discovered to be alive, 36 to be killed in the battles and buried by their relatives. Names of 14 more persons were included in the list.
As of July 1, 2007, the number of persons registered by the State Commission as missing is 4471.
The Commission also revealed 87 persons to be safe and sound but held captives and hostages in the territories controlled by Armenian occupation forces.
Eldaniz Bayaly Nuriyev, 30, a resident of Agsu province, taken captive by Armenian servicemen in Fizuli province of Azerbaijan on 31 December, 2006, was released with the mediation of the International Committee of the Red Cross on January 16, 2006. As of July 1, 2007, 1391 persons were registered by the State Commission as freed.
The Commission made inquiries about 288 missing persons to relevant bodies and international organizations to make the information it possesses more exact.
Replies to inquiries about 224 persons registered by the Commission as missing were analyzed, systemized and added into the relevant databases.
The Commission processed inquiries about 76 missing and released persons received from various state bodies and international organizations.
It considered inquiries about 18 missing persons submitted by their parents to the leadership and other bodies of the Republic.
Relatives of 65 missing persons were included in the working group, and provided with comprehensive information about the search process. Additional information they provided on the circumstances, under which those persons were missing, was recorded.
Testimonies given by 117 persons freed from captivity were analyzed, with facts of tortures, executions and vandalism included in the database.
The State Commission had nearly 15 meetings with representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross to discuss issues related to reducing the difference between the lists of missing, and to the release of Azerbaijani soldiers Samir Nazim Mammadov, Eldaniz Bayaly Nuriyev and resident of Nagorny Karabakh Valeriy Surenovich Suleymanyan held for crossing the line of troops’ contact.
For the reporting period, the Commission has disseminated over 600 copies of collected materials, 2539 books (5 titles) and 2130 CDs (8 titles, in 12 languages).
The State Commission also took measures to resolve social and health problems of tens of persons applied for the assistance.