Azerbaijan must guarantee the rights of ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh and ensure that the lives of civilians and detainees are respected and protected, in line with its international obligations, UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions Maurice Tidball-Binz said today. 

"Azerbaijan must also promptly and independently investigate the alleged violations of the right to life reported in the context of its latest military offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh, in which dozens of people, including peacekeepers, were killed," he noted.

Tidball-Binz said investigations should be conducted in accordance with international standards, particularly the Revised UN Guidelines for the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extrajudicial, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, also known as the Minnesota Protocol for the Investigation of Potentially Unlawful Deaths (2016). This protocol requires that investigations be prompt, thorough, complete, independent, impartial and transparent, he said.

"I reiterate my willingness to provide technical assistance to the authorities to ensure compliance with their international humanitarian law and human rights obligations to properly investigate each potentially unlawful death in accordance with applicable standards of forensic best practice," Tidball-Binz added.