Armenian soldiers were killed and captured in the outbreak of fighting on the border with Azerbaijan, the BBC reported. The Armenian Ministry of Defense confirmed the news. Officials said two battle positions had been lost and that the country had asked Russia to help defend its territorial sovereignty.
Armenia blamed Azerbaijani troops for resuming fighting and said 12 soldiers had been captured. The country did not immediately confirm details of the casualties, but the head of the parliamentary foreign affairs committee, Eduard Aghajanyan, said about 15 soldiers may have been killed. Azerbaijan said the country’s forces have responded to an Armenian attack. According to the Armenian Foreign Ministry, Azerbaijani forces have attacked the eastern border as part of a policy launched in May aimed at penetrating two Armenian areas – Syunik in the southeast and Gegharkunik in the east.
The first announcement of escalating tensions was broadcast on November 13, BGNES recalls. Baku initially reported a grenade thrown at an Azerbaijani post near Shuksha. Then came a report of shelling by the Armenian armed forces against the border police in the Kelbajar region, which came under Baku control in 2020. The Armenian side also reported open fire on its positions in the Gegharkunik region, which was’ “suppressed by retaliation.” The next day, information came from Azerbaijan again that army positions had been shelled with sniper rifles, grenade launchers and small arms. It was said that “illegal Armenian armed groups” were responsible for this, while Yerevan attributed the shooting to Azerbaijan’s attempt to launch an offensive on the border that had been crossed.
The Yerevan government has called on Russia and the rest of the international community to help withdraw Azerbaijani forces.
The November 2020 peace agreement, mediated by Russia, came after a war in which more than 6,000 people were killed. About 2,000 Russian peacekeepers have been sent to patrol the Nagorno-Karabakh region, the BBC reported.
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