3 Azerbaijani soldiers killed in Karabakh army retaliatory fire

January 6, 2015 - 14:08 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Over 320 instances of ceasefire violation by Azeri armed forces were posted on the night of Jan 6 at the line of contact with Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) armed forces.

Azerbaijan fired over 5000 shots from various caliber weapons towards the positions of Karabakh defense army, with the latter retaliating to the attack. As a result, at least 3 Azerbaijani solders, including the 703 brigade officer Eldar Mammadov, were killed. The identities of other soldiers are being verified.

The Defense Ministry of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic reported Saturday, Jan 3 that two Karabakh Armed Forces soldiers were killed while attempting to repel an attack from Azerbaijani forces.

The Ministry reported that the incidents took place on the southern and eastern directions of the Karabakh-Azerbaijan border, as Azerbaijanis attempted to violate the Line of Contact at around 3:15 a.m. local time.

Artsakh soldiers Karen Grigoryan and Vardan Mkrtchyan were killed, while the Azerbaijani side suffered losses and retreated to their positions.

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan

The conflict between Nagorno Karabakh and Azerbaijan broke out as result of the ethnic cleansing launched by the Azeri authorities in the final years of the Soviet Union. The Karabakh War was fought from 1991 (when the Nagorno Karabakh Republic was proclaimed) to 1994 (when a ceasefire was sealed by Armenia, NKR and Azerbaijan). Most of Nagorno Karabakh and a security zone consisting of 7 regions are now under control of NKR defense army. Armenia and Azerbaijan are holding peace talks mediated by the OSCE Minsk Group up till now.