Azerbaijan says Armenia fired on its military positions 16 times

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Azerbaijan on Sunday said the Armenian military fired on its positions 16 times during a specific period a day earlier.

A statement by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Armenia fired on its positions in the Gadabay, Kalbajar, and Lachin districts between 6.30 p.m. and 10.05 p.m. (1430-1805GMT).

“Azerbaijan Army Units took adequate retaliatory measures in all the mentioned directions,” the statement further said.

A day earlier, Azerbaijan said Armenia on Friday fired on its military positions in the Dashkasan, Kalbajar, Lachin, and Tovuz districts 30 times.​​​​​​​

Relations between Baku and Yerevan have remained tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.

Most of the territory was liberated by Azerbaijan during a war in the fall of 2020, which ended after a Russian-brokered peace agreement that also opened the door to normalization.

Azerbaijan established full sovereignty in Karabakh after an "anti-terrorism operation" last September, after which separatist forces in the region surrendered.​​​​​​

However, tensions on the Azerbaijan-Armenia border reignited on Feb. 12, when Baku said one of its soldiers was injured due to shots fired by Armenian forces toward the country's southwestern Zangilan district.