Baku, Azerbaijan, Apr. 28
Trend:
Armenian armed forces are targeting civilian population of Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani defense ministry told Trend Apr. 28.
Starting from April 27 evening until 04:00 (GMT + 4 hours) on April 28, Armenian armed forces fired at settlements in Azerbaijan's Terter and Aghdam districts using large-caliber mortars and D-30 howitzers, according to the ministry.
"Azerbaijani armed forces carried out retaliatory strikes only on Armenia's military facilities," the defense ministry said. "The situation on the contact line between Armenian and Azerbaijani armies is stable, and Azerbaijani armed forces fully control the operational situation."
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 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.