Your trusted source

“48 year-old Armenian from Baku has already been waiting for 20 years to be deported from Israel, but Azerbaijani authorities don’t give him necessary documents. Deputy of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (Israel ed.) Faina Kirschenbaum is trying to solve the problem with the help of Russia,” Izrus.co.il. Israeli portal writes.

It is stated in the article that it has already been 20 years that in Israel one of the last citizens of USSR lives, who was born in Baku and is of Armenian origin. He has been waiting for deportation. It is stated that 48-year-old man was repatriated by forged documents in 1993, but soon it was found that his birth certificate is fake. Israeli citizenship has been revoked but it is not possible to deport him either because of bureaucratic obstacles.

“The only document, certifying the identity of that man is his USSR passport issued by Azerbaijan SSR. For deportation to Azerbaijan an excerpt from the book of the state of civil registration is required. Baku doesn’t give the excerpt because of the fact that the man is an Armenian: according to the instructions of the country’s authorities such excerpts are not available for Armenians as excerpts are used for claims of compensation for confiscated property,” Izrus.co.il. writes.

Deputy Interior Minister of Israel Faina Kirschenbaum has decided to deal with this issue as the situation has become an absurd one while Israel has signed Convention on the Reduction of Stateless (persons without citizenship). As it is stated in the portal, along with appeals to Azerbaijani authorities, Kirschenbaum conducts negotiations with Russia so as the last citizen of USSR, who doesn’t have any other allegiance, as a successor of Soviet Union is given a Russian passport.

In case Russia gives its consent, there will be a need to solve another dilemma. The man can get a Russian passport only in Russia but he cannot leave Israel without documents as the old USSR passport cannot be considered one.

“Besides, the problem has humanitarian aspects as well: the Armenian is married to Israeli woman and they have two children,” the article reads.

Note that according to the last pre-conflict population census in 1979 more than 475,000 Armenians lived in the territory of Azerbaijan SSR. In the course of massacres and ethnic cleansing organized by Azerbaijani nationalists in 1988-1990 almost all Armenians of Azerbaijani SSR were expelled from their houses (except for the Armenians of Nagorno Karabakh where Azerbaijan was defeated in its attempt to expel Armenian population). Many Armenian refugees didn’t manage to take their documents with them while state structures of Azerbaijan don’t respond to inquiries related to citizens of Armenian origin.

Those who try to help Armenians to get their documents from Azerbaijan become subjects of persecution. In 2013 Azerbaijani Vesti.az news agency reported that the officers of Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan detained residents of Baku Alil Jebrailov and his son. The detainees were persecuted in regard to the attempt of organization of documents for the Russian citizens of Armenian origin, who previously lived in Azerbaijan SSR.

Note that in May 2011 the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) published a report stating that Azerbaijan at official level as well as through media portrays Armenia only negatively which leads to a negative perception of Armenians and makes them vulnerable to discrimination.

“People of Armenian nationality are daily at a risk of being discriminated against. Some people born as a result of mixed Armenian-Azerbaijani marriages are obliged to take the surname of Azerbaijani parent to avoid problems with the authorities,” the report reads.