10:30, 9 November, 2020
STEPANAKERT, NOVEMBER 9, ARMENPRESS. The Artsakh Defense Ministry reported 44 additional casualties, bringing the total military death toll to 1221.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan
Author: Vicken Chmshkian
Asbarez: Homenetmen Massis Raises $220,000 For Artsakh
November 6, 2020
The entrance to the event
In light of the renewed Azeri aggression against the people of Artsakh, Homenetmen Massis Chapter of the San Fernando Valley hosted an outdoor benefit concert with Karnig Sarkissian to raise funds for AYF’s “With Our Soldiers” campaign. The event took place on Saturday, November 1 at Neptune Productions in North Hollywood, where community members gathered for a revolutionary song night by adhering to all COVID-19 safety guidelines.
“During these difficult times, our scouts, athletes, and community members felt the urgency to support the defenders of our country and the families of those who gave their lives for Artsakh” said Massis Board Member Aslan Torossian. “By bringing the community together, we are sending a strong message to the homeland that they are not alone in their struggle and that the entire Armenian nation stands behind them” he continued. On behalf of the board, he also expressed his gratitude to ARF Central Committee Member Melkon Melkonian, Homenetmen Western Region President Hagop Tufenkjian, and community members in attendance for ensuring the success of this event.
During the event, guests and virtual attendees challenged each other to continue donating towards the campaign, surpassing the original fundraising goal of the event. In between songs, MC Melkon Melkonian kept announcing new donations. Mike Tavitian, Massis Chapter’s Athletic Director, also announced that leading up to the event coaches, parents, and athletic teams raised $22,000. On behalf of the board, he expressed his gratitude to all volunteers and donors for mobilizing and generously contributing towards the goal. “No matter the magnitude of the challenges we face as a nation, our athletes are always ready to support our collective cause” he added. At the end of the night, a total of $220,000 was raised for Artsakh by those in the crowd and from those who joined virtually.
The venue of the event
AYF’s “With Our Soldiers” campaign was initiated in 2012 to provide medical services and assistance to veterans of the Artsakh Liberation Movement. The campaign was relaunched following the 2016 April War to aid the families of the fallen soldiers. The current goal is to provide soldiers with items they need to fulfill their duty on the frontlines of Artsakh. The committee has trusted contacts on the ground that have conducted a needs-based assessment to determine where the funds will be used most effectively. “Homenetmen Massis Chapter’s organizing committee, Unger Karnig Sarkissian, and of multiple donors from our community contributed in a major way to this event’s success and made it possible for With Our Soldiers to continue to carry out important work for our soldiers on the frontlines,” added Koko Abounayan of AYF’s “With Our Soldiers” committee.
The organizing committee would like to thank all of its sponsors and vendors for helping prepare this event. Please see the list of vendors and sponsors below:
Neptune Productions
Brio Water Technology
Super King Markets
Terrace Restaurant
Furn Saj Bakery
Salad Farm Figueroa
Image Cube
MTB Event Rentals
Imperial Design Co
Balloon Studio LA
Simply Kleen USA
Creative Balloons LA
Got the Goods LA
Sweets & Treats By Tamar
GHS Video
3dzook
Park Safe
BBC: Grey Wolves: Far-right group to be banned in France
BBC News, UK
Nov 2 2020
Grey Wolves: Far-right group to be banned in France
France is banning the far-right Turkish group Grey Wolves after a memorial to the Armenian genocide near Lyon was defaced with pro-Turkish slogans.
The Grey Wolves, an international organisation, is seen as allied to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The memorial was daubed with yellow graffiti over the weekend that included Mr Erdogan's initials.
It comes amid growing tensions between France and Turkey over a territorial dispute in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan erupted over the mountainous territory of Nagorno-Karabakh in September. The region is internationally recognised as part of Azerbaijan, but it is controlled by ethnic Armenians.
Turkey has backed Azerbaijan in the conflict.
- What are Armenia and Azerbaijan fighting over?
The move to ban the Grey Wolves will be put to the French cabinet on Wednesday.
The ban will mean that any activities or meetings by the group could lead to fines or imprisonment, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said.
As the group is an international organisation, the ban will only restrict its activities in France.
Images of the memorial just outside Lyon showed yellow graffiti featuring the Grey Wolves' name alongside the letters "RTE" – for Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Last week, four people outside Lyon were wounded in fights between suspected Turkish nationalists and Armenians protesting against Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, according to AFP news agency.
Tensions between France and Turkey also intensified recently after French President Emmanuel Macron's pledge to defend secular values and fight radical Islam.
Responding to Mr Macron's comments, Mr Erdogan said the French president needed a mental health check.
It came after French teacher Samuel Paty was murdered after showing his students controversial images of the Prophet Muhammad.
Depictions of the Prophet Muhammad can cause serious offence to Muslims because Islamic tradition explicitly forbids images of Muhammad and Allah (God).
Last week, Turkey vowed to take "legal, diplomatic actions" over a cartoon of Mr Erdogan that appeared on the cover of French magazine Charlie Hebdo.
The cartoon depicted Turkey's president lifting the dress of a veiled woman.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-54787028
Asbarez: HALO Trust Gearing Up To Clear Cluster Bombs in Artsakh
October 27, 2020
Cluster bombs found in Stepanakert
BY ADROUSHAN ANDY ARMENIAN
On Wednesday, October 21, I met with Brad Tirpak, a member of the HALO Trust Board of Trustees; Chris Whatley, Executive Director of HALO Trust USA; and Diana Tatili, Head of Development and Communications of HALO Trust USA.
What is a cluster bomb?
The HALO Trust is a British-American charitable organization that has operations in 25 countries around the world clearing landmines and explosives. Since 2000 the HALO Trust has been operating in Nagorno Karabakh, Artsakh, and through their international trainers and explosive ordnance disposal teams, HALO has trained over 200 local Armenian technicians to help clear minefields.
During this period more than 500 minefields, containing tens of thousands of explosives have been cleared, making it safe for the villagers to return to their fields and restore their livelihoods.
Our discussion focused on the current devastating war and an immediate challenge of how to clear cluster bombs in the city of Stepanakert and surrounding towns and villages.
The use of cluster bombs in any circumstances is banned under international humanitarian law, however Stepanakert has been under near-constant shelling for weeks and unexploded shells, rockets and bombs remain a hazard. Cluster bombs, dropped by air or fired by artillery, open in mid-air to release hundreds of smaller bomblets across a wide area up to the size of several football fields. Around 20% of the bomblets intentionally do not explode mid-air and land on the ground potentially killing and maiming civilians long after conflicts end. These bomblets pose a particular risk to children who can be attracted by their toy-like appearance and bright colors.
Currently HALO staff in Artsakh is visiting as many bunkers and shelters as possible to hand out leaflets and explain to stay clear of unexploded cluster bombs.
Due to the enormous amount of unexploded bombs, HALO Trust is gearing up to recruit around 100 new technicians who will undergo a three week training program, and be ready to start the clearing task once it is safe to do so.
The HALO trust estimates a $4 million budget for the next 12 months to carry out the cleaning operations in Artsakh. Unfortunately, government funding is not immediately available, and it might take 4-6 months until new grants are made available. Therefore, HALO Trust is reaching out to individual donors to specifically donate to Artsakh’s clearing activities so they could start their operations as soon as possible.
Also note that an anonymous non-Armenian donor has pledged to double any donation to Artsakh. So, all donations will be matched!
Explosives are in Stepanakert streets. Please help save lives in Artsakh by donating to the HALO Trust in support of their humanitarian efforts.
No heavy clashes occurred on front line, Artsakh neutralizes subversive group – War map
22:27,
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 24, ARMENPRESS. No heavy clashes occurred on Artsakh-Azerbaijan contact line on October 24, ARMENPRESS reports representative of MoD Armenia Artsrun Hovhannisyan said in a press conference.
''Azerbaijan started military operations in the northern direction, no heavy clashes took place until midday. During the day they launched powerful artillery fire and skirmishes occurred. No fierce clashes occurred in the southern direction as well’', Hovhannisyan said.
According to him, a subversive group was neutralized south from Martuni and north from Hadrut, but fighting against subversive groups continues in that section.
''The adversary initiated attacks a number of times in the tactic of local offensives, using different types of military equipment. The attempts were prevented and repelled, in some sections the adversary retreated. A number of armored and non armored vehicles were destroyed'', Hovhannisyan said.
Human Rights Watch: Azerbaijan used cluster munitions in Nagorno Karabakh
12:20,
YEREVAN, OCTOBER 23, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijan has repeatedly used widely banned cluster munitions in residential areas in Nagorno Karabakh, Human Rights Watch said, summing up the on-site investigation in Nagorno Karabakh in October 2020.
Human Rights Watch documented four incidents in which Azerbaijan used cluster munitions.
“The continued use of cluster munitions – particularly in populated areas – shows flagrant disregard for the safety of civilians,” said Stephen Goose, arms division director at Human Rights Watch and chair of the Cluster Munition Coalition. “Cluster munitions should never be used by anyone under any circumstances, much less in cities, due to the foreseeable and unacceptable harm to civilians.”
In the conflict over Nagorno Karabakh, Human Rights Watch is investigating whether all sides of the conflict adhere to international humanitarian law, which requires armed forces to distinguish between combatants and civilians, and between military objects and civilian objects, at all times. As such, indiscriminate attacks are prohibited, including attacks which employ a method or means of combat which cannot be directed at a specific legitimate military target. Human Rights Watch has made repeated requests to the Azerbaijani government for access to conduct on-site investigations, but access has not yet been granted.
Human Rights Watch examined remnants of the rockets, impacts, and remnants of submunitions that exploded, as well as dud submunitions that failed to function at several locations in Stepanakert, the capital of Nagorno Karabakh. Human Rights Watch also examined photographs taken in the town of Hadrut of a rocket, impacts, and remnants of submunitions that exploded, and a dud submunition that failed to explode. Human Rights Watch also spoke to six people who witnessed the attacks.
Residents of Stepanakert told Human Rights Watch that attacks using cluster munitions began on the morning of September 27 in a residential area no more than 200 meters from the office of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1032510.html?fbclid=IwAR2lh-n53szXNk2g7iqEwKTpzv3tb0TplIjcaYxiCS7kDImCsEt0MGFPIRk
CivilNet: “Erdogan Should be Tried in an International Court”
CIVILNET.AM
20:40
David Phillips, Director of peacebuilding and human rights at the Institute for the Study of Human Rights at Columbia University, gave his take on Turkish President Erdogan’s aggression towards Armenia, and how the West should review and act towards this military ally. He also expanded upon Russia’s role in all this, as well as Turkey’s ambitions in the region.
Israeli academics ask Israel: Stop arms sales to Azerbaijan
Israel National News
Oct 18 2020
Azerbaijan is a friend of Israel, but Turkey is helping in its war against Armenia. Should Israel be selling arms to the Azeris? Op-ed.
Uzay Bulut , 18/10/20 10:41
Since September 27, Azerbaijan has launched a major offensive against the Armenian Republic of Artsakh, also known as Nagorno-Karabakh, located in the South Caucasus. Azerbaijan has since indiscriminately bombed civilians, with the direct support it receives from Turkey, who recruited jihadists from Syria and elsewhere.
The Israeli government, it seems, continues to sell weapons to Azerbaijan during the height of this war. In an open letter on October 5, a group of academics from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem called upon the Israeli government to immediately cease these arms sales. The letter reads, in part:
“From a reading of independent accounts and analysis we have concluded that this outbreak of violence in the last few days is due solely to aggression of the Republic of Azerbaijan, supported by Turkey and backed up by fighters from elsewhere in the region.”
“This belligerence has been directed towards military and civilian targets in the Republic of Artsakh and its mainly Armenian population, and deserves to be condemned in no uncertain terms. The response of the Republic of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia is clearly one of defense of population, property and territory, and should enjoy the support of those who cherish the principle of self-determination of peoples.”
On October 15, the World Union of Jewish Students (WUJS) issued a statement on the situation in Artsakh, saying, in part:
“We call on the Israel Government to cease all exports of weapons to Azerbaijan while the conflict is ongoing, and instead to play a role as a peace-seeking mediator.”
Artsakh is an integral part of historical Armenia. It has preserved its predominantly Armenian demographic character and semi-independent status as an Armenian entity despite falling under various invaders (such as Turkic nomadic tribes) throughout the centuries.
In 1805, the Russian Empire annexed Artsakh. In the early 1920s, Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin placed Artsakh under the administration of Soviet Azerbaijan as an autonomous oblast (administrative division) although the region was predominantly Armenian.
The people of Artsakh were exposed to “a policy of economic and social discrimination and political repression” at the hands of Soviet Azerbaijan. From 1988 to 1990, in response to repeated requests by the people of Artsakh for reunification with Armenia, Azerbaijan resorted to violent persecution. This included pogroms and mass killings against Armenians in Sumgait, Kirovabad, Baku, and other Azerbaijani cities. When Artsakh finally declared independence in 1991, Azerbaijan responded by launching a full-scale war against the territory, targeting civilians and destroying villages and towns.
Twenty-nine years later, Artsakh is once again under attack. “Nagorno-Karabakh is our land,” Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev said in a televised address to his nation on October 4. “This is the end. We showed them who we are. We are chasing them like dogs.”
On the same day, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) reported that in Artsakh:
“Hundreds of homes and key infrastructures like hospitals and schools have been destroyed or damaged by heavy artillery fire and by airborne attacks including missiles. Other infrastructures such as roads, electricity, gas, and communication networks have also been damaged. Families are on the move looking for safe shelter, while others have retreated underground to unheated basements sheltering day and night from violence.”
Despite the temporary ceasefire brokered by Russia announced on October 10, Azerbaijan continues indiscriminately shelling Artsakh, including its capital, Stepanakert. Azerbaijani armed forces even targeted a hospital, where civilians are receiving medical treatment, Artsakh Beklaryan, the region's human rights ombudsman, reported on October 14.
Azeri-Turkish wanton violence against Armenian civilians and residential areas confirms what Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced on October 7:
“What we are facing is an Azeri-Turkish international terroristic attack,” he told Sky News. “To me there is no doubt that this is a policy of continuing the Armenian genocide and a policy of reinstating the Turkish empire.”
Pashinyan was referring to the 1913-23 Christian genocide against Armenians, Assyrians and Greeks at the hands of Ottomans and nationalist Turks, who largely wiped out the victims from their ancient homeland.
On October 11, Arayik Harutyunyan, the president of Artsakh Republic, posted on Twitter:
“Israel is aware its weapons are used against the civilian population in Artsakh. Israeli drones were used for offensive & not defensive purposes back in April 2016. They are accomplices of Azerbaijan’s genocidal policy, despite being a nation that survived genocide.”
Meanwhile, Azerbaijani-Turkish attacks have displaced half of Artsakh's population, according to its rights ombudsman Beklaryan.
“They left because of the shelling of civilians,” said the president of Armenia, Armen Sarkissian, in an interview with the German newspaper Bild. “And it wasn’t just one bomb that killed people, and not two bombs. There is shelling every day! Look at Stepanakert from the air… It looks like German cities during the Second World War.” (Not a very useful comparison to Israeli ears, as the Allied forces and Jews felt that the bombing of German cities was well-deserved.)
Arthur Atanesyan, a professor at the department of Applied Sociology of Yerevan State University, said that “By providing offensive weaponry to Azerbaijan, and especially in times of active offensive operations by Azerbaijan, backed by Turkey, on the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, any state, including Israel, becomes a supporter of the anti-democratic forces.”
He continued:
“Turkey with its authoritarian leader and Azerbaijan as a totalitarian state with no political opposition and no freedoms and with many jailed journalists and aggressive rhetoric about the region, instrumentalized regional conflicts as a tool for their national identity construction. Hate speech is the only message constantly expressed by the Azerbaijani leading clan about other parties of negotiation process around Karabakh conflict, and military actions toward civilians in Karabakh are their way of conflict behavior aimed at another Genocide of Armenians on their homeland.
“Any third state supporting Azerbaijan politically and/or militarily, assists to the continued attempts of these two Turkish states to repeat the Genocide of Armenians that was committed by Turkey one hundred years ago and that still remains unpunished. And any military or political assistance by the third states to the Turkish aggression in Karabakh serves the criminal elites in both states of 'the same nation'. It is important to note that Islamists and terrorists have also been invited by Turkish leaders to fight against democratic Armenian society in Karabakh and in Armenia.
“Having being exposed to the terrible crime of Holocaust by Nazi Germany, the Israeli society must feel and understand the suffering of Armenian civilians in Karabakh, and immediately ban its government from providing offensive weaponry to the totalitarian regime of Azerbaijan in order not to serve as a tool for the two Turkish states, and not to appear in the list of assistants of another cruel crime.”
On October 13, the Israeli High Court of Justice rejected a petition to ban arms sales to Azerbaijan “as lacking evidence to justify a hearing on whether they have been used for war crimes against Armenia,” reported The Jerusalem Post.
“Since the beginning of the war the Armenian side has been publishing photo and video evidence that proves the deployment of cluster munitions from Israel to Azerbaijan,” said historian Anahit Khosroeva, a professor at Yerevan State University. She continued:
“However, Israel's High Court of Justice rejected a petition to ban arms sales to Azerbaijan.,,We, Armenians, do not see any solidarity from the people who went through the Holocaust.
“Since the current war in Artsakh started, I believe additional weapons were brought from Israel to Azerbaijan three times. The cargo planes of the Azerbaijani Silk way airlines, majority of whose shares belong to Azerbaijani president Aliyev’s daughter, have been operating flights from Baku to Israeli’s Uvda region, where Israel has an airbase, and back. As a genocide scholar, I strongly condemn that even during Artsakh war, Israel continues to supply arms and weapons to Azerbaijan, which, certainly, exacerbates the situation along the frontline. By now the Israeli government should know that the weapons they sell are being used against the civilian population not only of Artsakh, but also of the Republic of Armenia. This is unacceptable.”
Armenia said on October 1 that it had recalled its ambassador to Israel over their arms sales to Azerbaijan, who has acknowledged using Israeli-made weapons against Artsakh. “While the Israeli Defense Ministry does not publish details of sales by country, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in 2016 said his country had bought $4.85 billion in defense equipment from the Jewish state,” according to an op-ed on Arutz Sheva.
Yoav Loeff, a lecturer of Armenian history and language at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, commented:
“I think that the selling of Israeli weapons to Azerbaijan is problematic for three main reasons. The first and most important one is the humanitarian factor ‒ we see that Azerbaijan acts again and again as an aggressor, both towards the Republic of Artsakh and towards Armenia itself. In this current war, the Azeri side has been using masses of weapons, including Israeli ones, to deliberately target civilian population. This is immoral and violates the international law. Israel should stop providing weapons that are used this way.
“A second important reason is that one sided military involvement in the South Caucasus harms the tightening of relationship between Israel and Armenia (e.g., Armenia's recent returning of its ambassador who had just arrived in Israel). The third reason is the fact that Azerbaijan cooperates in the current war with Islamic extremists. That raises the concern that although Israel and Azerbaijan are currently in good relations, ideas and interests may change over time, and we should be worried about possibilities that the Israeli weapons that were sold to Azerbaijan may be used in the future against Israel itself or against Israel 's allies. For all these reasons, it would be wise if the Israeli government reassesses its policy in the South Caucasus and the ways to make it more balanced.
“Also, the war over the tiny piece of land of Artsakh / Nagorno Karabakh seems to become more and more a matter of world politics. With the deep involvement of Russia, Turkey and other international forces, the future developments are very difficult to predict. Massive involvement of Israel with one side (the Azeri one) may lead to unpredictable complications. This may be an additional reason for Israel to reconsider its involvement.”
As of October 12, over 500 members of the Artsakh army have lost their lives, according to Armenian sources. Azerbaijan does not disclose military casualties. The Armenian Weekly reported on October 14 that “at least 70 civilians on both sides of the contact line have been killed with over one hundred wounded.” On October 15, video footage from the village of Hadrut in Artsakh emerged of Azeri soldiers capturing and later executing two Armenian soldiers. Mistreatment and murder of prisoners of war is prohibited under the Third Geneva Convention and is considered a war crime.
Donna Shalev, a Professor of Classical Studies of Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said:
“I have great respect for the cultural and intellectual legacies of Armenia over the generations. I also empathize deeply with the Armenians' right to life after all that they have suffered. Most of all, I am politically and morally concerned with and hugely disappointed by the foreign policy actions by some elements in the Israeli government; civilized people here did not sign up for selling arms to an aggressor, just as we have for a long time been disappointed with the 'realpolitik'-motivated avoidance of officially recognizing the Armenian holocaust.”
Meanwhile, Jewish Armenians have also expressed their fears stemming from Israel’s arms sales to Azerbaijan. Journalist Lara Setrakian wrote for Haaretz: “An Armenian Jewish friend came over to my home in Yerevan. She is anguished. 'Armenians are David,’ she says, and asks: 'Why is Israel arming a genocidal Goliath?'"
Suren Aghasi Manukyan, the head of the department of Comparative Genocide Studies at Yerevan's Armenian Genocide Museum and Institute, noted:
"As a scholar who engaged many years in genocide studies, I believe that genocide totally transforms society. It changes its understanding of human nature and worldview. It provides the victim community high empathy and compassion. The societies that have gone through genocide are more sensitive to others' sufferings and pains, and indeed it should get a lot more selective in making friends and alliances. And we expect such a stance from Israel."
"Now Israeli weapons are used by Azerbaijan to target civilians and civilian infrastructure in Artsakh and Armenia. It is time for civil society of Israel, academics, cultural and religious leaders to demand from their government to reconsider and cease arm-sales agreements with Azerbaijan as its policy can be considered not only as warning signs for genocide but also as genocidal in nature themselves; as conspiracy to commit genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide and attempt to commit genocide, which according to the UN Genocide Convention are acts that all states of the world are obliged to prevent and punish."
In 2019, Israeli historian professors Benny Morris and Dror Ze'evi co-published a ground-breaking book, The Thirty-Year Genocide: Turkey’s Destruction of Its Christian Minorities, 1894–1924, in which they documented Ottoman Turkey's genocide against Armenians, Assyrians and Greeks. Professor Ze'evi, who teaches at the Department of Middle East Studies of the Ben Gurion University of the Negev, said:
“The recent bout of warfare in Nagorno Karabagh/Artsakh has no justification. This current flare-up emerged mainly from Azeri president Aliyev's internal problems and from Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan's aggressive (and perhaps expansionist) foreign policy that we have seen in Syria, Iraq, Libya, the Aegean, and even inside Turkey. Azerbaijan and Turkey have taken advantage of the paralysis in the world as a result of the coronavirus pandemic and America's isolationism under Donald Trump, to further their aims in this battle-torn region.
“I believe we should not supply arms to any of the sides in this clearly immoral and vicious campaign. I also believe, as do many other Jews, that we who have suffered atrocities in the past should not assist an act of violence directed against a nation that has suffered as much as the Armenians did through modern history. I know Israel has a long friendship and a clear strategic interest in keeping good relations with Azerbaijan, but it has no business assisting it with arms shipments. Israel should send a field hospital, food and medicine, or even peacekeepers, but we should not have Israeli war machines participating in this war.”
Azerbaijani drone strikes pick off Karabakh artillery
Yahoo! News
Oct 17 2020
,
AFP•
The red mulberry trees meant to conceal them were not enough: Azerbaijani night-time drone strikes destroyed seven artillery guns in a field in Karmir Shuka, in southeast Nagorno Karabakh.
Armenian separatists had towed the guns down off the road, around 20 or 10 metres (yards) from each other, hooked up to trucks, their barrels down, out of firing position.
But the pinpoint strikes at 2:00 am on Friday picked them off.
"We were not in an offensive action," said Onik Mnatsakanian, a major with the Armenian army deployed in the self-proclaimed republic of Nagorno Karabakh.
"We were deployed and waiting, but we were attacked," he told AFP journalists.
The Azerbaijani strikes, powerful and accurate, reduced the trucks to piles of scrap metal.
Everything around the vehicles in a five-metre radius was incinerated, but no one was killed or even injured — because they quickly got their soldiers out of harm's way when they heard the approaching drones, said Mnatsakanian.
The surrounding mulberry trees, whose fruits go into a famous local vodka, were reduced to tree stumps and a few charred branches.
And the field, about the size of a football pitch, was scattered with debris from the strikes: bits of blackened metal, twisted or sheared off, pieces of bodywork, a piston here, the remains of seat there, shells intact and in fragments.
There were also the remains of the soldiers' possessions, abandoned when they scrambled to safety: a sandal, the remains of a Kalashnikov rifle bayonet, a tin of food, a khaki cap.
– An unequal fight –
"The enemy uses very accurate Turkish and Israeli drones," said Mnatsakanian. And that made it an unequal fight given the mainly Russian weapons at the disposal of the Armenian fighters, he added.
The village of Karmir Shuka sits about 20 kilometres (12 miles) back from the front line, with roads leading to Martuni and Hadrut, where the fighting has been fierce since the conflict erupted on September 27.
At around noon, rumours of another drone in the vicinity began circulating. An officer arrived and quickly ordered two lorries towing artillery that escaped the night-time strikes away from the mulberry grove.
On the road to Hadrut, military lorries, ambulances and 4x4s move as quickly as they can.
Around 50 soldiers in fatigues and carrying their weapons, are trudging back from Hadrut in small groups, heading back to the village to rest after having been relieved.
Their faces are lined with fatigue, the sweat stands out on their brows, they move at a slow pace under the blazing sun.
Down below them, down in the mulberry grove, near the still smoking carcasses of tyres and burning tree branches, a family of pigs rummages through the blackened, churned earth.
epe/jj/har
https://news.yahoo.com/azerbaijani-drone-strikes-pick-off-164322009.html
Armenpress: [Sunday] The Azerbaijan military airbase has been destroyed by the Armenian military!
Ganja military airbase is 'no more' – Artsakh says
10:49, 4 October, 2020
STEPANAKERT, OCTOBER 4, ARMENPRESS. The Ganja military airbase used by the Azeri forces to attack Artsakh’s civilians has been completely destroyed, Artsakh’s presidential spokesperson Vahram Poghosyan said.
“The Ganja military airport is no more,” he said.
“Despite numerous warnings, the Azerbaijani terrorist army continues targeting the peaceful population of Stepanakert with Polonez and Smerch systems. From now on the military facilities permanently deployed in Azerbaijan’s major cities are legitimate targets of the Defense Army. I am calling on the Azerbaijani population to immediately leave these cities to avoid possible losses,” President of Artsakh Arayik Harutyunyan said.
Harutyunyan warned that the entire responsibility falls on the Azeri leadership.
UPDATES: The original version of this article has been updated with President Harutyunyan's statement.
Editing and Translating by Stepan Kocharyan