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A former senior officer who held the post of commander in the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Defense Army during the 2020 war has been arrested, Armenia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement on Saturday,

The colonel, identified only by his initials as S.A., violated the rules of combat duty established by a number of normative legal acts, the law enforcement agency said.

In particular, on September 26, 2020, he organized a feast to mark the formation of the military unit with the participation of around 100 officers. The commanders of the subordinate units on combat duty alerted him about the Azerbaijani build-up of manpower and equipment on the Artsakh border, which indicated a dramatic increase in the risk of the outbreak of hostilities. However, the colonel did not put the troops on high alert.

Moreover, from 6:10am on 27 September he was informed about the advance of Azerbaijani tanks and armored vehicles towards the frontline, but “continued to show inaction and failed to fulfill the powers and duties assigned to him by law”, the Investigative Committee said.

"Under these conditions, on September 27, 2020, at around 7:10am, the Azerbaijani military launched a large-scale attack along the defense line and in the following hours broke through the defense of a number of combat positions, inflicting heavy losses on the Armenian troops․.. As a result, the entire personnel of the military unit was forced to retreat, while the villages of Talish and Mataghis of the Martakert region fell under the control of the enemy,” reads the statement.

S.A. has been charged with violating the rules of combat duty or combat service during martial law, war or in a combat situation under Article 365 (Part 3) of the Criminal Code. He was placed under arrest on July 29.

The investigation is underway.