Hikmat Hajiyev: Ocampo openly biased, not to mention Armenia’s war crimes against Azerbaijan

The former International Criminal Court prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, who claims to be a lawyer, is abusing the concept of genocide as if he didn’t know what it means, Hikmat Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan, Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration, said in an interview with Arab News, according to Report.

He was answering a question about Ocampo’s anti-Azerbaijani report and accusations against Azerbaijan of allegedly committing 'genocide' of Armenian residents of Karabakh, Report informs.

"First of all, the personality, the honesty of this individual who claims to speak on behalf of justice, is questionable. There are a lot of facts in the international media about him engaging in wrongdoings. But that is not my business.

"Second, I do regret that a person who claims to be a lawyer could misuse and abuse the concept of genocide as if he didn’t know what it means.

"Third, he’s biased. Why does he not talk about the genocide and war crimes on a state level committed by the Republic of Armenia against Azerbaijan?" he said.

The presidential aide noted that in his report, Ocampo keeps silent about all the war crimes and destruction committed by Armenia on the territory of Azerbaijan.

"Eight cities of Azerbaijan have been completely destroyed, along with the civilian population. Where is that fact in the Ocampo report?

"Where was Ocampo when in 1992, before Srebrenica, the whole population of Khojaly, Azerbaijan, was massacred by Armenians?

"Who has conducted a genocide against whom? That’s the big question. It is a question that should be answered with regard to one million Azerbaijanis, who have been ethnically cleansed from their land, and who have been living as IDPs and refugees for 30 years.

"Why is Ocampo silent with regard to the cultural heritage of Azerbaijan, including Azerbaijan’s mosques that have been completely destroyed by Armenia?"

He noted that some international media outlets are falling into the trap of Armenia’s political propaganda. In turn, Azerbaijan, in accordance with the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, also brought very serious accusations against Armenia in the International Court of Justice.

"In Armenia, the word Azerbaijani or Turk is used as an insult. That says a lot about the mainstream thinking in Armenian society. I can provide you with many other examples of ethnic hatred and Azerbaijan-phobia. But the facts on the ground speak for themselves. Armenia has destroyed all elements of Azerbaijan’s cultural, religious and even human heritage in the territories under its occupation. Therefore, I do regret that some international media outlets are falling into the trap of Armenia’s political propaganda,” he noted.

"Why are Armenians resistant to taking wheat flour from Azerbaijan? You are asking me a question about ethnic hatred. What is that then? Wheat flour doesn’t have an ethnicity. It’s a food staple that everyone can use. But why are they refusing it?"