Council of Europe confirms Turkey's use of mercenaries in Nagorno-Karabakh war
After the outbreak of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, a conflict that pitted Azerbaijani armed forces against Armenia in the region, Turkey, along with other countries such as Afghanistan and Pakistan, showed their support for Azerbaijan. However, Turkey went a step further in the conflict by providing extensive military and human support. In this regard, UN reports criticising Turkey's role in the conflict soon followed claims that Turkey was providing mercenaries from Syria, which could include jihadists.
Several reports published by different institutions, such as the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, alleged that several Turkish companies had recruited Syrian fighters to fight in the ranks of the Azerbaijani army against Armenians. The Observatory indicated that these mercenaries came from northern Syria and managed to reach Azerbaijan via Turkey.
These accusations have been brought to the attention of the Council of Europe, which through its Parliamentary Assembly has identified Turkey as a country that sent Syrian mercenaries to support Azerbaijan in last year's conflict against Armenia.
In a resolution, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) indicated that there was sufficient evidence of "the worrying use by Azerbaijan, with the help of Turkey, of the use of Syrian mercenaries". Following this statement, the Assembly has urged Turkey to cooperate fully with the European Court of Human Rights on these allegations.
The PACE referred to the UN Working Group on the use of mercenaries and said that "Azerbaijan, with the help of Turkey, used Syrian fighters during the six-week war, including on the front line". The report added that "the fighters appeared to be motivated primarily by private gain and, in case of death, their relatives were reportedly promised financial compensation as well as Turkish nationality".
The PACE referred to the UN Working Group on the use of mercenaries and said that "Azerbaijan, with the help of Turkey, used Syrian fighters during the six-week war, including on the front line". The report added that "the fighters appeared to be motivated primarily by private gain and, in case of death, their relatives were reportedly promised financial compensation as well as Turkish nationality".
In this regard, Armenian lawmaker Ruben Rubinyan said that "the use of mercenaries from Syria by Azerbaijan with the help of Turkey is a fact. This event has been confirmed by the state security agencies of Iran, Russia, France, the United States, international media, human rights watchdogs and NGOs, so this is the truth, and it must be shown".
On the Turkish side, the report's conclusions have been questioned. Members of the Turkish and Azerbaijani delegations tabled a number of amendments to remove references to mercenaries. However, the Assembly rejected the amendment by 68 votes against, 28 in favour and 10 abstentions. At the end of the session, the resolution and its report were adopted by an overwhelming majority.
UN human rights experts reiterated allegations against Turkey over the use of mercenaries and the role of the Turkish government in recruiting Syrian fighters to take part in military operations in Nagorno-Karabakh.
In November 2020, coinciding with the outbreak of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh war, UN rapporteurs sent a joint letter to the Turkish government requesting information on Turkey's role in the conflict and "the circumstances surrounding the recruitment, financing, transportation and deployment of Syrian fighters to participate in hostilities in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict".
The UN indicated that the alleged use of Syrian fighters in the conflict had a very negative impact on peace and security in the region. From Turkey, the government's response was issued through a note verbale dated 21 January 2021 in which they stressed that "the Working Group's press release on the use of mercenaries based on black propaganda products of fake images and fabricated news has undermined the credibility of the UN Special Procedures Mechanism".
However, according to UN rapporteurs, the deployment of Syrian mercenaries contributed to a rapid escalation of the conflict, resulting in the escalation of hostilities and causing harm and suffering to the civilian population.
According to reports received by the UN, members of the Hamza Division, the Sultan Murad Division, the Al-Amshat Faction and the Sultan Sliman Shah Brigade allegedly agreed to be transferred to Azerbaijan in exchange for financial compensation. The UN letter noted that "Turkey allegedly contracts private military and security companies to facilitate the preparation of official and contractual documentation for the fighters, apparently in coordination with the Turkish security services".
It is estimated that around 2,000 mercenaries from the Middle East fought in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said he was concerned about "the internationalisation of the conflict" and the use of "Middle Eastern fighters".
In this conflict, according to Amnesty International, the "indiscriminate" use of low-precision weapons by both armies caused dozens of civilian deaths and hundreds of injuries. In addition, thousands of homes and basic infrastructure in the area were destroyed, leaving hundreds of civilians homeless.
According to Amnesty International's director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Marie Struthers, "by using this imprecise and deadly weaponry in the vicinity of civilian areas, Armenian and Azerbaijani forces violated the laws of war and showed contempt for human life". "Civilians were killed, families were broken, and countless homes were destroyed because all sides to the conflict used notoriously inaccurate weapons against towns and villages," it said.
