Baku handed over eight servicemen of the Armenian Armed Forces to Yerevan. This was reported on February 7 by the press service of the State Commission for the Affairs of Captives, Missing Persons and Hostages of Azerbaijan.

“In return for this humanistic step, the Armenian side must provide the Azerbaijani side with information about the Azerbaijani servicemen and civilians allegedly killed during the first Karabakh war, as well as information about the places of their mass graves,” the message says.

It is reported that among those who were returned to the Armenian side, there are servicemen who were captured during armed clashes on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in November 2021.

Prior to this, in December 2021, Azerbaijan handed over five prisoners of war to Armenia, who were also captured during the November battles.

On November 15, clashes began on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. Baku and Yerevan blame each other for instigating the skirmishes. On the evening of November 16, after the heads of the military departments of Armenia and Azerbaijan phoned the head of the Russian Defence Ministry, Sergei Shoigu, the fighting stopped. Presumably, the conflict escalated due to the desire of one of the parties to occupy strategic heights located in the disputed territory.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia confirmed the return of eight servicemen from Azerbaijan. On February 7, the press service of the Armenian Foreign Ministry published a message about this.

“Through the mediation of French President Emmanuel Macron and President of the European Council Charles Michel, 8 Armenian prisoners of war returned to their homeland,” the report says.