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The statement of the Azerbaijani Minister of Defense on the detention of 77-year-old “Armenian saboteur” on 28th of January, 2014 causes laughter and disbelief even in Baku. Note that the citizen of Armenia, Mamikon Khojoyan on that day crossed the state border and ended up in the area controlled by Azerbaijan.

The article published in Azerbaijani News portal Haqqin.az titled “Saboteur-77-year-old madman Mamikon” accompanied with the photos of the detainee says, “The Azerbaijani Media circulates the photos of Armenian saboteur who appears to be older than 65! It’s time already for the Azerbaijani News Agencies really to learn how to work without such blunders. Now look at that saboteur! One doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry! What can I say? There is nothing to add; these photos say everything.”

It’s noteworthy that earlier the Azerbaijani Media reported that the Armenian citizen was detained by local residents who handed him over the military. The Secretary of Azerbaijani State Commission on prisoners of war, hostages and missing persons Shahin Sailov informed the journalists that Khojoyan is a civilian. He was detained in Alibeili village of Tovuz region of Azerbaijan and handed over to the military.

Later, in the statement of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense 77-year-old man turned out to be a “conductor of subversive group” and he was no longer detained by the civilians, the residents of the border village but by the Azerbaijani military. Furthermore in initial reports of Azerbaijani Media there was no word about the fact that Khojoyan was wounded, whereas the latest statement of the Ministry of Defense claims that the detained man is wounded.

Famous Azerbaijani political observer Rauf Mirkadirov in his article “Very funny situation amid local engagements and human losses” published on the website of Azerbaijani newspaper Zerkalo brings forward the words of Vagif Dyargakhli, the head of the Press service of the Ministry of Defense that the detained 77-year-old Mamikon Khojoyan “is a saboteur and is well aware of the topography.”

Mirkadirov quotes Kamo Chobanyan, the headman of Verin Karmiraghbyur village of Tavush region of Armenia who stated that the detainee 77-year-old Mamikon Khojoyan is a resident of the village who suffers from mental illness and is registered at the specialized clinic.

“At noon the villagers saw him carrying a bucket. They asked him where he was going and he answered “to pick grapes.” How there can be grapes in the winter? The gardens are situated eight km far from the village, thus he went down and accidently crossed the border,” Chobanyan said that he himself learnt about what happened from the Azerbaijani Media when saw the photos of his fellow villager.

Mirkadirov therefore calls for the respect for Azerbaijani servicemen, who are claimed to have a “victory” over “old-man saboteur.”

“Don’t you think that the Armenians could have found a younger scout- saboteur who would have been familiar with the topography? This is not serious: 77-year-old half dead man. Secondly, it turns out that the Armenians don’t respect our army at all as they send 77-year-old men to fight against us. Gentlemen, we should respect our own army! I don’t think that our soldiers there at the forefront every day risk their lives for the reports of similar kind like their victory over old man saboteur…Besides, the old man was noticed, detained and headed over by the similar villagers but from our side. This is not a tragedy but a very funny situation…” Mirkadirov sums up.

On its turn, political scientist of Baku, Zardusht Alizadeh in an interview with the Azerbaijani service of British Broadcasting Corporation BBC said: “the Azerbaijanis present the poor Armenian as a saboteur but this doesn’t mean that it is the truth.”

Alizadeh noted that this kind of cases when the detained Armenian citizens were accused of espionage as well happened before. “But there was no evidence,” the Azerbaijani political scientist added.