BAKU, Azerbaijan, September 13. A criminal investigation has been initiated against Armenia's provocation on the border with Azerbaijan, Trend reports referring to the General Prosecutor's Office of Azerbaijan.
"On the night of September 12, the Armenian armed forces units, having grossly violated the international law principles, the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols, the UN Security Council's decisions and resolutions, as well as the trilateral statement of November 10, 2020, [signed by the Azerbaijani, Russian, and Armenian leaders], committed large-scale provocations in the Dashkasan, Kalbajar and Lachin directions of the Azerbaijan-Armenia state border," said the statement.
According to the statement, the sabotage groups of the Armenian armed forces using the mountainous terrain of the area and the existing ravine gaps mined the territories and supply roads between the positions of the Azerbaijan Army Units in various directions at night.
As the prosecutor's office noted, the Armenian armed forces stationed in the directions of Basarkechar, Istisu, Garakilsa, and Gorus settlements subjected to intensive fire some positions, shelters, and strongholds of the Azerbaijan Army in the Dashkasan, Kalbajar and Lachin districts from various caliber weapons. As a result, there were losses among the military servicemen, the military infrastructure was damaged.
"The Azerbaijan Army Units deployed in the mentioned directions took decisive retaliatory measures in order to suppress Armenia's provocations and military threats to the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan, to ensure the safety of the military personnel, including civilian workers involved in infrastructure work in Kalbajar and Lachin districts," the prosecutor's office stated.
The statement read that over the past month, provocations of the Armenian armed forces in the direction of Lachin, Gadabay, Dashkasan and Kalbajar districts of the state border, the shelling of the Azerbaijan Army positions in the territory of the above-mentioned districts using various caliber weapons were intensive and systematic. Thereat, it was observed that Armenia concentrated offensive weapons, heavy artillery, and military personnel along the borders of Azerbaijan.
Based on the material gathered, a criminal investigation has been initiated in the Ganja, Gubadli, and Kalbajar Military Prosecutor's Offices under Articles 100.1 (planning, preparation, or initiation of a war of aggression), 100.2 (waging of a war of aggression), 116.0.7 (attack on unprotected territories, settlements, and demilitarized zones), 120.2.7 (murder of two or more persons), 120.2.12 (criminal offense against a person on the basis of national, racial or religious hatred) of the Criminal Code, investigative groups are organized, and operational-investigative actions are being carried out.
"The General Prosecutor's Office of Azerbaijan is taking the appropriate measures to further reveal the aggressive essence of Armenia in the international arena, and bring the Armenian servicemen responsible for crimes to justice. We ask media representatives, as well as social media users, not to publish unofficial and unspecified information. The public will be provided with additional information on the ongoing situation," the statement added.