Azerbaijani Soldier who Breached Armenia’s Border ‘Had No Intent to Kill,’ To

Azerbaijani soldier Nasimi Musayev shot at Syunik resident Ani Avetisyan in her home in Shaki village

The chair of the Investigative Committee became another government official who downplayed the breach of Armenia’s sovereign border, saying that the Azerbaijani soldier who crossed into Syunik and held a family at gunpoint “had no intent to kill.”

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Investigative committee chair Artur Poghosyan said that Nasimi Musayev, the Azerbaijani soldier who entered Shaki village resident Ani Avetisyan’s house on October 1, had been questioned and provided his account of the incident to his office.

Poghosyan sustained serious injuries when Musayev shot her, while holding her young children at gunpoint. Poghosyan has said that if she hadn’t acted her family would be dead.

“He has been questioned and has given testimony. I cannot disclose the content of the questioning. But I can say that he has given testimony and indicated the location, the incident, the route he used and how he arrived — he has described it all,” Poghosyan said.

Asked by a reporter why Musayev had opened fire, Poghosyan replied: “All I can say is that he had no intent to kill.”

The committee chairman stressed that this assessment was based on the factual circumstances of the incident.
He said Musayev was accused of causing grievous bodily harm, unlawful deprivation of liberty, violating the inviolability of a home, theft and illegally crossing the border. Poghosyan also said the preliminary investigation would be completed soon.

Efforts to downplay the events of October 1 began when Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan called the incident “a random criminal act” and went on to rebuke Poghosyan for not waiting for law enforcement to arrive.

According to Posghosyan, law enforcement officials arrived at the scene only after she was able to repel Musayev and he had fled her home.

Armenia’s National Security chief Alen Simonyan went on to seemingly defend Musayev, saying that he was lost and wandered into Armenia by mistake, effectively sweeping the fact that Armenia’s national border was breached under the rug.

In discussing this matter, Pashinyan and other government officials have said that the incident should not derail efforts to establish peace with Azerbaijan.