Jalal Harutyunyan Found Guilty by Syunik Regional Court
The Syunik Regional Court has found Jalal Harutyunyan, former commander of the Artsakh Defense Army, guilty. However, the specific penalty he will face has yet to be disclosed.
Harutyunyan was convicted of negligence during military service on October 12, 2020, amid the 44-day war, which carelessly led to grave consequences. The court’s decision on the punishment will be announced soon.
According to the indictment, Harutyunyan’s provision of incorrect information resulted in the deaths of 20 servicemen from the D-20 artillery division of the “Tsor” military unit, the injury of 7 others, and the transfer of the unit to Azerbaijani control. The commander of the artillery division is also accused in the case concerning the “Tsor” military unit’s soldiers.
Harutyunyan served as the Defense Army’s commander at the start of the 44-day war. Then he stepped down after sustaining a severe injury.
In 2022, the Investigative Committee announced that Harutyunyan faced accusations of serious mistakes in two episodes during the 44-day war.
The first episode pertained to the failed counteroffensive operations on October 7-8, 2020, due to inadequate preparedness and lack of coordination. He was later acquitted in this case.
The second episode involved the events near the village of Juvarlu on October 12, where a wrong decision led to the loss of strategic territories to the enemy and severe human and technical losses for the Armenian side.
Harutyunyan’s successor, Mikael Arzumanyan, was also later accused of military negligence and abuse of power.