ARMENIAN ATTACK FAILS, LEAVES THREE DEAD

AzerNews Weekly
Jan 28 2009
Azerbaijan

Armenian armed forces launched an offensive on Azerbaijani troops
on Monday, in a bid to take over a frontline checkpoint and thus
strengthen their positions.

The Armenian troops attempted to advance toward Azerbaijan`s positions
in a village of the northwestern Aghdam district at about 7 p.m.,
the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry said.

During the shooting that lasted about an hour, the enemy had to retreat
after losing three servicemen and sustaining injuries of several
others. The Azerbaijani armed forces did not incur any casualties,
according to Eldar Sabiroghlu, the ministry spokesman.

Sabiroghlu said the dead body of one Armenian serviceman currently
remains close to the contact line of the Azerbaijani and Armenian
troops. The Armenian side succeeded in carrying away the other wounded
soldiers and dead bodies.

An employee of AssA-Irada news agency was an eyewitness of the
shooting.

The latest violent clash on the frontline was reported in March
2008 when several Azerbaijani soldiers were killed after Armenian
armed forces breached ceasefire in the frontline Terter and Goranboy
districts.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus republics reared up in
the late 1980s due to Armenia`s territorial claims. Armenia has been
occupying over 20% of Azerbaijan`s internationally-recognized territory
since the early 1990s in defiance of international law. The ceasefire
accord was signed in May 1994, but over a decade of efforts by US,
Russian and French mediators have been fruitless so far.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress