It appears that the war in Artsakh between Azerbaijan and Armenia may be about to come to an end following a trilateral peace agreement between Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia. The news comes as more information emerged of jihadi fighters and their use in the conflict by Azerbaijan and their ally Turkey.
Clear evidence emerged after a Syrian man, fighting on behalf of Azerbaijan and Turkey, was captured by Armenian forces. In his chilling confession, he states that he was paid a $2,000 a month to fight and given a $100 bonus for every Armenian head he could cut off.
El Haji, was captured on November 1st by Armenian forces, and is from Syria. He had previously fought in the Syrian civil war and is illiterate. His confession is extremely disturbing but backs up other evidence gathered from other captured jihadis. He told Armenian authorities:
"They told me I would receive a monthly salary of $2,000 and that I would only participate in military exercises. Both my father and my wife were against me going to Azerbaijan but when I heard that others from neighbouring areas were going, so I decided to join them. I was told I did not need to take any documents with me, not even my passport. They selected men between the ages of 20 and 40. They recruited 500 men on the spot. Then we were put in ten buses and taken to the Turkish border. At the border there was no examination of documents. We continued in the buses until we reached a Turkish airport and then boarded a plane to Azerbaijan. Once there we were received by Azerbaijani and Turkish soldiers. They issued us with uniforms, weapons and ammunition."
"On October 18 we were taken to the Artsakh front. The commander there was Abu Amsan. The Azerbaijanis told us that we had to take the Armenian villages and kill everyone there. They told us that for every beheaded Armenian we would get $100. We were issued knives for that purpose. They said that if anyone was afraid, they should take a special pill for that. They issued us with pills but I did not take one. As we moved toward the Armenian villages, the Armenians opened fire in our direction. 15 men were killed and many more injured. I too was injured but the Azerbaijanis left me there for five days. Then I decided to surrender. The Armenians gave me food and water. The Azerbaijanis call the Armenians' infidels', but that is a big mistake. The real infidels are the Azerbaijanis and I who came to fight against these nice people. No man should go to fight for Azerbaijan because the Armenians are gentle, kind people who saved me from certain death."
"Even if you're poor and looking for a way to make money, don't come here to fight against the Armenians. It's better to stay poor."
At the start of the conflict, it was revealed that Turkey had transported the 'Hamza brigade' to Azerbaijan. The group had fought previously on behalf of Turkey in both the Syrian and Libyan civil wars where they have been accused of war-crimes including mass-murder, rape and torture.
Scenes erupted in the Armenian capital Yerevan yesterday as Armenians protested their Prime Minister's decision to sign the peace agreement with Russia and Azerbaijan, which they fear could leave the ethnic Armenians living in Artsakh subject to genocide.
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