During the 44-day war, officers of the police and penitentiary institutions

168.am–sent written requests RA Investigative Committee and: RA General Prosecutor’s Office, through which, in particular, we tried to find out how many cases of desertion there were from the National Security Service and the Police during the 44-day war. But both the Investigative Committee and the RA General Prosecutor’s Office stated in response to our questions. “There are no separate statistics on the mentioned issues” or «separate accounting is not carried out”.

Note that during the 44-day war, on October 26, 2020, the Police statement shared, referring to the video spread on social networks during the war, where a frontline police officer complains about living conditions and living conditions.

The police said at the time that the video was taken in the early days of the war, when the urgency of recruitment was still causing some problems, and that later all problems were resolved and combat duty soon became orderly.

“We urge and appeal to our citizens not to spread such materials without checking the circumstances, not to generalize private cases, and to inform the relevant authorities about such materials. The official investigation in relation to the mentioned video is ongoing. Appropriate measures will be taken according to the results of the examination.” was mentioned in the Police report.

Let us add that during the days of the 2020 war, former Artsakh president Arayik Harutyunyan, who is in Baku today, made “accusations” against the RA NSS units, that the RA NSS unit rejected his request to go to “Eghnikin” during the 44-day visit.

From NSS to us in 2022 had reported that no criminal proceedings have been initiated in this regard, but an official investigation was carried out.”

And in response to our question on the same topic, in 2025, the NSS wrote in its letter had mentioned.“As for the presence of criminal proceedings, to get the mentioned information, you can apply to the pre-investigative body that manages the information.”

However, there is no information about any criminal cases against the NSS officers for refusing the request of the former president of Artsakh or for desertion among them.

Instead, we have in our hands exclusive documents related to the 44-day period in relation to the police. They are, in particular, refer to more than 100 employees of the Armavir Regional Department of the RA Police, who refused military service after leaving for Artsakh under martial law, but as a result were freed from criminal prosecution.

The relevant decision states that on October 4, 2020, they left for the village of Mekhakavan in the Hadrut region of the Republic of Azerbaijan in order to participate in combat operations, but on October 7, as a group, they refused to fulfill their military service duties to participate in the combat operations taking place in the Republic of Azerbaijan, which was combined with their actual cessation.

In addition, it is reported that upon reaching the indicated place, they were deployed on the hills, lined up in a straight line 4-5 km long according to battalions and companies, and began to dig half-ruined trenches, which were 40-50 cm deep and could not be noticed by the enemy only in a lying position. As mentioned, they stayed in that area for 2 days in the rain-filled trenches, without participating in any contact combat operations, during those days they also ran out of food, no instructions were received, and no reinforcements were brought.

 

 

What is described here supports the claims that during the days of the war there was complete confusion in important directions, or organized disorganization, and we are still surprised that we lost the war. On the other hand, such cases emphasize the heroism of 18-20-year-old soldiers, army officers, and command. And nothing that Anna Hakobyan and: Nikol Pashinyan by desertion they mainly mean the army and the military.

Of course, for the sake of justice, it should be noted here that in the 44-day war, the Police gave more than 4 dozen victims, and among them there were also heroic fighters.

And we also have exclusive documents regarding about 200 officers of different penal institutions of the RA Ministry of Internal Affairs, who, under the declared martial law, in October 2020, when there was a war in Artsakh, in order to finally avoid military service, voluntarily left their assigned combat positions with the weapons entrusted to them for service, returned to military units, surrendered their weapons, refusing to go to the front line, but were later freed from criminal prosecution.

It should be noted that on October 5, 2020, with the participation of then Minister of Justice Rustam Badasyan and Head of the Penitentiary Service, Major General of Justice Artur Goyunyan had happened The event of sending the CPC volunteer assembly company to the front.

Badasyan said in his welcome speech. “We are dealing with a new pan-Turkish plan, we are dealing with the involvement of terrorist mercenaries in war operations, who opposed the victorious resistance of a brave Armenian soldier. I am also sure that you all realize that the future of our motherland is only in our hands, and only we will be able to protect our motherland from the enemy.”

The head of the Penitentiary Service, Justice Major General Artur Goyunyan highly appreciated the desire of the devotees of the system to enlist in the sacred work of defending the motherland and expressed his belief that everyone will return victorious, and everyone’s names will be written in golden letters in the history of the service.

By the way, let’s remind that we also wrote about the way of contract workers in Tavush during the war about closing there were people accused of this fact.

Later was information received also that 18 servicemen of the 3rd Army Corps were charged, they refused to go to Artsakh during the war. There is information that some of them are also acquitted, but this is a matter for a separate discussion.

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