Baku court asks Ghukasyan about Shushi liberation honors

PanARMENIAN.Net - During the ongoing staged trial in Baku against Artsakh’s former political and military leadership, former president Arkadi Ghukasyan was questioned about who received awards in 1992 for capturing Shushi, reports Minval.az .

Ghukasyan said that before 1990, he worked for the newspaper Soviet Karabakh, and at the end of 1992, he was appointed as an adviser on political matters to the Prime Minister.

It was noted that Armenia’s Defense Minister Vazgen Sargsyan and Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Gurgen Dalibaltayan were among those awarded.

During the session, a photograph of Arkadi Ghukasyan in Shushi was shown. Answering questions from state prosecutor Tarana Mamedova, Ghukasyan said the photograph was taken during a visit to Shushi, where he was accompanied by Zori Balayan and Oleg Yesayan.

Former Artsakh president Bako Sahakyan confirmed his participation in the liberation of Shushi, stating that he served in the detachment led by Vilen Mikayelyan.

“That was the eastern direction. I know that the commander for that direction was Arkadi Karapetyan,” Sahakyan said, according to Trend.az .

The next court session is scheduled for May 1.

The liberation of Shushi, known as the "Wedding in the Mountains" military operation, took place from May 8 to 9, 1992. From Shushi, Azerbaijani forces heavily shelled Stepanakert and surrounding Armenian villages. In one week, approximately 1,000 shells were fired from Shushi, 800 of them being rockets, resulting in the deaths of 20 civilians. As of April 27, 1992, Shushi, already evacuated of its civilian population, was heavily militarized with significant amounts of military equipment and ammunition.