Azerbaijan destroys Armenia’s firing points

By Ruslan Rehimov

BAKU (AA) - Azerbaijan's army on Friday destroyed mortar firing points of the Armenian army, according to Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry.

In a statement, the ministry said the mortar firing points in the occupied village of Goyark in the Tartar city were destroyed by "the precise strike of our units."

The ministry also shared the footage of the strike.

Since clashes erupted on Sept. 27, Armenia has repeatedly attacked Azerbaijani civilians and forces, violating three humanitarian cease-fire agreements since Oct. 10.

Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Upper Karabakh, or Nagorno-Karabakh, an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.

Four UN Security Council resolutions and two from the UN General Assembly, as well as international organizations, demand the "immediate, complete and unconditional withdrawal of the occupying forces" from occupied Azerbaijani territory.

About 20% of Azerbaijan's territory -- including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions -- has been under illegal Armenian occupation for nearly three decades.

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Minsk Group -- co-chaired by France, Russia, and the US -- was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was agreed to in 1994.

World powers, including Russia, France, and the US have called for a sustainable cease-fire. Turkey, meanwhile, has supported Baku's right to self-defense and demanded the withdrawal of Armenia's occupying forces.