Fierce fighting raged between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces today, sparking bellicose rhetoric from regional power Turkey despite international pleas for a halt in fighting between the longtime enemies.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked in a territorial dispute over the ethnic Armenian region of Nagorny Karabakh for decades, with deadly fighting flaring up earliaer this year and in 2016.
The region declared its independence from Azerbaijan after a war in the early 1990s that claimed 30,000 lives but is not recognised by any country, including Armenia, and is still considered part of Azerbaijan by the international community.
Fighting between Muslim Azerbaijan and majority-Christian Armenia could embroil regional players such as Russia, which has a military alliance with Armenia, and Turkey, which backs Azerbaijan.
Karabakh's defence ministry said 27 fighters were killed in fighting today, after previously reporting 28, bringing their total military losses to 58.
The overall death toll rose to 67 including nine civilian deaths: seven in Azerbaijan and two on the Armenian side.
Azerbaijan has not reported any military casualties, but Armenian separatist officials released footage showing burnt-out armoured vehicles and the bloodied and charred remains of soldiers in camouflage it said were Azerbaijani troops.
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev ordered partial military mobilisation and General Mais Barkhudarov vowed to "fight to the last drop of blood in order to completely destroy the enemy and win."
With each side blaming the other for the latest fighting, world leaders have urged calm as fears rise of a full-scale conflict, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia was monitoring the situation closely and that the current priority was to "stop the hostilities, not to deal with who is right and who is wrong."
But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan demanded Armenia end its "occupation" of Karabakh.
"The time has come for the crisis in the region that started with the occupation of Nagorny Karabakh to be put to an end," Erdogan said.
"Now Azerbaijan must take matters into its own hands."
Armenia has accused Turkey of meddling in the conflict and sending mercenaries to back Azerbaijan.
A war monitor has said Turkey has sent at least 300 proxies from northern Syria to join Azerbaijani forces.
Turkey informed the fighters that they would be tasked with "guarding border regions" in Azerbaijan in return for wages of up to $2,000, said Rami Abdul Rahman, the head of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The report comes after the European Union warned regional powers not to interfere in the fighting and condemned a "serious escalation" that threatens regional stability. (RTE)
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Кабмин Армении запретил выезд из страны всех мужчин из мобрезерва старше 18 лет.
ReplyDeleteArmenian Defence Ministry Reports Another Offensive by Azerbaijan on Contact Line in Karabakh, Says 'Attacks Are Repelled'
ReplyDeleteВ Ереване заявили, что азербайджанские вооруженные силы в понедельник вечером начали широкомасштабное наступление на северном и южном направлениях Нагорного Карабаха, где идут ожесточенные бои.
DeleteUnited Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday expressed his great concern over the latest Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, calling on both sides to immediately stop fighting.
ReplyDelete"The secretary-general is extremely concerned over the fresh resumption of hostilities along the line of contact in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone. He condemns the use of force and regrets the loss of life and the toll on the civilian population," according to a statement issued by the secretary-general's spokesman Stephane Dujarric.
"The secretary-general strongly calls on the sides to immediately stop fighting, de-escalate tensions and return to meaningful negotiations without delay. He will be speaking to both the president of Azerbaijan and the prime minister of Armenia," the statement said.
Azerbaijan has never forgotten its 1990s humiliation at the hands of Armenia. Now stronger than its sworn enemy, and emboldened by Turkish support, Baku’s assertiveness is creating a headache for Moscow...
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Nagorno-Karabakh Ministry of Defense Says 26 of Its Servicemen Killed in Fighting on Monday
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