BAKU, Azerbaijan, Oct.21
Trend:
A battalion of Armenian Armed Forces' 556th regiment was destroyed as a result of the operations carried out by the Azerbaijani army in the Jabrayil direction of the front, Trend reports on Oct.21 referring to Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.
According to the ministry, most of the battalion's personnel numbering some 400 contract servicemen were disabled. The military unit returned to the city of Ararat in Armenia for re-manning.
Reportedly, the regiment’s commander was dismissed for refusing to lead the remaining personnel into battle. Most of the servicemen were prosecuted for refusing to fight.
Armenian Armed Forces launched a large-scale military attack on positions of the Azerbaijani army on the front line, using large-caliber weapons, mortars, and artillery on Sept. 27.
Azerbaijan responded with a counter-offensive along the entire front. As a result of retaliation, Azerbaijani troops liberated a number of territories previously occupied by Armenia, as well as take important, strategic heights under control.
The fighting continued into October 2020, in the early days of which Armenia has launched missile attacks on Azerbaijani cities of Ganja, Mingachevir, Khizi as well as Absheron district.
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, the 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 the withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno Karabakh and the surrounding districts.