Azerbaijan's Justice Ministry confirms hospitalization of detained Armenian national

Vagif Khachaturyan, who is currently under arrest in Azerbaijan, has been hospitalized following a deterioration in his health, the Ministry of Justice has confirmed.

The Ministry reported that on December 22, 2025, the condition of the 70-year-old convicted individual (born in 1955) worsened, with symptoms including shortness of breath and pain in the cardiac region, Caliber.Az reports per local media.

Khachaturyan was initially provided with first medical assistance by a physician from the Main Medical Department of the Ministry of Justice. He was subsequently transferred on an emergency basis to a medical facility operated by the Ministry of Justice, where intensive therapy and resuscitation measures were administered.

As no significant improvement in his condition was observed, Khachaturyan was later transferred to a relevant state medical institution to receive highly specialized medical care.

The Ministry stated that his condition is currently assessed as serious, and intensive therapy is continuing.

Vagif Khachaturyan is accused of participating in the massacre of Azerbaijanis in Meshali village of Khojaly district on December 22, 1991 as part of Armenian military formations. As a result, 27 Azerbaijanis were killed, 21 people were wounded of varying degrees of severity, two villagers were taken hostage and 340 people were expelled from their homes.

On July 29, 2023, Vagif Khachaturyan was detained by the servicemen of the State Border Service at Lachin border checkpoint while trying to leave for Armenia. By the court's decision, a preventive measure in the form of arrest was chosen against him. He was prosecuted as an accused under Articles 103 (genocide) and 107 (deportation or forced resettlement of population) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

By Vafa Guliyeva