1800 USD for fighting against Nagorno Karabakh - Novaya Gazeta about Syrian mercenaries

Russian Novaya Gazeta has published an extended investigative article, presenting the mechanisms of recruiting Syrian mercenaries, conditions and their use by Azerbaijan against Artsakh (Nagorno Karabakh). ARMENPRESS reports author of the article Wadih El Hayek notes that though up till now Turkey and Azerbaijan deny the information of Syrian mercenaries sent by Turkey to Nagorno Karabakh conflict zone, the facts proof the opposite.

The author published the photo of a mercenary, noting that it’s Mohamed Shaala, killed during military operations in Nagorno Karabakh.

‘’He is Syrian, born in Al Atārib,a small town near Aleppo. In the past he used to fight with Suvar al-Sham under the Free Syrian Army. After the start of military operations in Nagorno Karabakh, he went there to fight for Azerbaijan. He was killed in the first days of the conflict’’, the author writes.

Wadih El Hayek also published the data of the Syrian observatory for human rights.

‘’According to the data, 134 Syrian citizens have died during Nagorno Karabakh fights. 13 of them during the last 48 hours. All of them have been recruited by Turkish citizens for participating in Nagorno Karabakh conflict from the Azerbaijani side. A representative of the secular opposition of Syria told us that so far 185 Syrian mercenaries have been killed’’, Wadih El Hayek writes.

According to him, some Syrians who have been sent to Azerbaijan have already asked the Turkish brokers to help them to return to Syria without getting their promised payment.

‘’It’s hard to say how many Syrians are now in Azerbaijan, but in the initial reports 1000 mercenaries were mentioned. It’s important to understand that during the first days of the NK escalation the main recruitment process was taking place. Later it de...