YEREVAN (Combined Sources) — Four soldiers were killed on February 13 as a result of shelling by the Azerbaijani armed forces of Armenian positions in the southern Syunik province, near the village of Nerkin Hand.
According to the Ministry of Defense, they are Eduard Harutyunyan (b. 1974), Gagik Manukyan (b. 1982), Arsen Hambarsdzumyan (b. 1979) and Hrachya Hovhannisyan (b. 1957). Another soldier was injured.
The wounded serviceman’s health condition is currently assessed as moderate, with no immediate threat to life.
The Foreign Ministry of Armenia issued the following statement: “On February 13, another provocation and use of force by the Azerbaijani armed forces in the area of Nerkin Hand of Kapan Municipality, Syunik region, resulted in casualties of 4 killed and 1 wounded. Despite the statement of the competent authorities of the Republic of Armenia on February 12 stating that the footage published by the Azerbaijani media on the same day and the information that the border guards of the Republic of Armenia wounded an Azerbaijani serviceman in the Kapan area are being investigated, the Azerbaijani side carried out aggressive actions on the morning of February 13. This indicates that Azerbaijan is looking for pretexts for escalation on the border.
“These actions of use of force were preceded by bellicose statements by the military and political leadership of Azerbaijan, as well as information and propaganda preparatory work in recent days. The leadership of Azerbaijan is constantly trying to disrupt the efforts of actors interested in stability and security in the South Caucasus to resume negotiations aimed at the normalization of Armenia-Azerbaijan relations.
“We strongly condemn these actions of Azerbaijan resorting to military provocations, we call to refrain from steps that destabilize the situation and return to negotiations. Once again, we reaffirm the proposals previously voiced by the Armenian side to implement reliable measures aimed at increasing border security.”
