Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 4
Trend:
Armenia continues to aggravate the situation despite the unilateral suspension of counteroffensive and response measures by Azerbaijani armed forces on the front line since April 3, Azerbaijani defense ministry said in a statement Apr. 4.
In order to regain the lost positions, the enemy attacks Azerbaijani positions in the Aghdere-Terter and Khojavand-Fuzuli directions, carries out intense shelling of the settlements near the contact line of Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, according to the statement.
During the fighting on Apr. 3 and on the night of Apr. 4, the Armenians suffered numerous losses in manpower and military equipment, the defense ministry said.
Three soldiers of the Azerbaijani armed forces were killed in the fights, according to the ministry.
On the night of Apr. 2, all frontier positions of Azerbaijan were exposed to heavy fire from large-caliber weapons, mortars, grenade launchers and guns. In addition, Azerbaijani settlements near the frontline densely populated by civilians were shelled.
The counter-attack was made following provocations of the Armenian armed forces at night of Apr. 2, which resulted in deaths and injuries of civilians.
Six Armenian tanks, 15 gun mounts and reinforced engineering structures have been destroyed and more than 100 servicemen of the Armenian armed forces were wounded and killed during the shootouts.
Twelve servicemen of the Azerbaijani armed forces heroically died, one Mi-24 helicopter was shot down and one tank damaged by a mine.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.