Ramil Safarov, Date of Birth, Place of Birth

Ramil Safarov

Azerbaijani National Hero

Date of Birth: 25-Aug-1977

Place of Birth: Şükürbəyli, Azerbaijan

Profession: military personnel, translator, linguist

Nationality: Azerbaijan

Zodiac Sign: Virgo

Ramil Sahib oglu Safarov (Azerbaijani: Ramil Sahib oglu S?f?rov, [r?'mil s?'hip o?'lu sæ'færof]); born August 25, 1977) is an officer of the Azerbaijani Army who was convicted of the 2004 murder of Armenian Army Lieutenant Gurgen Margaryan.
During a NATO-sponsored training seminar in Budapest, Safarov broke into Margaryan's dormitory room at night and axed Margaryan to death while he was asleep. In 2006, Safarov was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life imprisonment in Hungary with a minimum incarceration period of 30 years.
After his request under the Strasbourg Convention, he was extradited on August 31, 2012 to Azerbaijan, where he was greeted as a hero, pardoned by Azerbaijani president Ilham Aliyev despite contrary assurances made to Hungary, promoted to the rank of major and given an apartment and over eight years of back pay.
According to Azerbaijani authorities, Safarov was pardoned in compliance with Article 12 of the convention.
Following Safarov's pardon, Armenia severed diplomatic relations with Hungary and immediate protests broke out in Yerevan.
The extradition was widely condemned by international organizations and governments of many countries, including the US, Russia and France.