YEREVAN. – The Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan, on Thursday met with Council of Europe (CoE) Secretary General Thorbjørn Jagland, in Strasbourg, France.

Tatoyan presented to the CoE Secretary General the gross human rights violations committed against the civilian population of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh), as a result of Azerbaijani aggression launched in early April.

Office of the Human Rights Defender informed Armenian News-NEWS.am that during the talk, the ombudsman presented to Jagland specific examples of the atrocities committed by the Azerbaijani armed forces. He has also transmitted to the CoE chief the report published by NKR Human Rights Defender, and which analyzes these cases of atrocities.

Tatoyan stressed that devastating consequences of the Azerbaijani aggressive policy of disseminating hatred and violence towards people of Armenian ethnicity, and which endangers the CoE human rights protection system. Moreover, the Armenian ombudsman noted that such policy is encouraged at state level in Azerbaijan and that it is absolutely intolerant.

It was recorded that human rights violations are unacceptable under any circumstances, and that human rights cannot recognize borders or politics.

The interlocutors also highlighted the role of the Human Rights Defender in implementing European standards in the country. More specifically, the importance of the Ombudsman institute in executing the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights was stressed.

Arman Tatoyan and Thorbjørn Jagland also discussed the avenues for prevention of domestic violence, protection of the rights of people with disabilities, and several other matters relating to human rights.