Number of non-combat deaths in Armenian army on the rise - human rights activist

The number of non-combat deaths in the Armenian army has sharply increased.

"As a result of requests to government bodies, including Armenia’s Ministry of Defence, the Prosecutor-General’s Office, and media publications, it has become known that from January to October 2023, 74 servicemen of the Armenian Armed Forces were killed. As of September, according to official figures from government agencies, 72 deaths were registered in the Armed Forces,” the coordinator of the department of oversight of defence and security sector of the Vanadzor office under the Helsinki Citizens' Assembly, Nazeli Movsesyan, told the Armenian media, Caliber.Az reports.

"If we talk about the causes, 19 servicemen were killed in combat conditions as a result of ceasefire violations, while 55 deaths were recorded in non-combat conditions. For comparison, it was reported that in January-October 2022, 56 deaths were registered, of which 14 were in combat, while 42 were in non-combat conditions.

"In other words, the number of non-combat deaths in 2023 increased by 31 percent. This is also related to the fire that broke out in January in the village of Azat, as a result of which 15 military servicemen were killed.

"This year, nine cases classified as suicides have already occurred in the Armenian army, while only six cases were registered during the entire 2022. This is a very serious problem, a consequence of hazing in the army. Such cases must be properly investigated, although statistics show that cases continue, their number is unfortunately increasing. These data once again emphasize that there is a big problem associated with the lack of appropriate substructures to comply with security rules in the army,” Nazeli Movsesyan noted.