Armenia: "Deserter major" on trial for deaths of 20 artillerymen

Another trial in the case of the officers of one of the Armenian military units kicked off in Yerevan on April 17.

Major Gevorg Gevorgyan, deputy chief of staff of an artillery division, is charged with committing a "socially dangerous act", Caliber.Az reports, citing Yerevan-based Hraparak newspaper.

According to the indictment, at around 6 a.m. on October 12, 2020, Major Gevorgyan ran away from a firing position by a GAZ vehicle during combat operations in the territory of Azerbaijan's Fuzuli district. The division personnel left without leadership, panicked and suffered heavy losses.

According to the criminal case file, 20 Armenian reservists and soldiers of the division were killed because of Major Gevorgyan's escape.

The newspaper recalls that one of the accusations brought against Jalal Harutyunyan, who commanded the Karabakh separatist forces during the 44-day war, concerns the circumstances of the deaths of Armenian artillerymen on October 12, 2020.