(MENAFN- AzerNews)
By AzerNEWS
September 27, 2020, is one of the most important days in the
history of the national heroism of Azerbaijan. That day, the Armed
Forces of the Republic of Azerbaijan began responsive measures to
counter another military provocation from the armed forces of the
Republic of Armenia.
How did the counter-offensive start?
After the Republic of Azerbaijan regained its independence for
the second time in the early 1990s, its territories were subjected
to Armenian occupation. Armenia, which has been eyeing the
territories of Azerbaijan from time to time, took advantage of the
collapse of the Soviet empire and began to invade the Garabagh
region of Azerbaijan and then the surrounding regions. For 30
years, Armenia illegally settled in Garabagh, ignoring 4 UN
resolutions on Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, and carried out
terror and genocide against the peaceful population of
Azerbaijan.
The years 1991, 1992, and 1993 were consecutively marked as the
year of invasion and tragedies in the history of Azerbaijan. During
the First Garabagh War in 1991-1994, Azerbaijan gave nearly 12
thousand martyrs, and in the end, more than 20 percent of the
territories were occupied by Armenian military units.
After the ceasefire agreement reached with Armenia at the
initiative of National Leader Heydar Aliyev in 1994, Azerbaijan
appealed to international institutions and organizations. At that
time, Armenia was protected by both Russia and Western
organizations, and, taking advantage of this opportunity, Yerevan
tried to legitimize the occupation of Garabagh and other
Azerbaijani territories. Many organizations tried to freeze the
Garabagh conflict in favour of Armenia and always stood by Armenia
on the issue of the conflict.
Finally, in 2020, Armenia continued its 30-year-old mood of
invasion and launched provocative attacks against Azerbaijan. After
a long ceasefire, the Armenian side against Azerbaijan initiated
the first offensive in July. In order to advance further, Armenia
started firing towards some of Azerbaijan's former contact lines,
and as a result, on September 27, the Azerbaijani army launched a
counter-offensive operation.
The self-defence operation initiated by Azerbaijan was
written down in history as the Patriotic War
2908 military servicemen of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces were
martyred, and 6 are considered missing in the Patriotic War.
Unable to withstand the triumphant march of the Azerbaijani
Army, the enemy resorted to provocations and committed war crimes
by targeting innocent civilians.
The second largest city of Azerbaijan, ancient Ganja with
numerous historical and cultural monuments, Mingachevir (Water
Power Station) and Yevlakh (Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline),
where strategic facilities are located, Beylagan, Barda, Tartar,
Gabala, Goranboy, Agjabedi, Absheron, Khizi, and other regions were
fired from ballistic missiles and other heavy artillery
devices.
On September 27, 2020, as a result of the fall of a cannon shell
on the house of Elbrus Gurbanov, in Gashalti-Garagoyunlu village of
Naftalan city, a family - of 5 people was completely destroyed.
On October 4, 5. 8, 11, and 17, as a result of missiles and
heavy artillery, 26 people died, 175 people were injured in the
city of Ganja, and civil infrastructure facilities and vehicles in
the city were heavily damaged.
As a result of missile and heavy artillery attacks by Armenian
armed forces, 29 people died, 112 people were injured in the Barda
region, and civilian infrastructure facilities and vehicles in the
region were heavily damaged.
Totally, as a result of Armenia's military aggression, 93
civilians were killed, including 12 children and 27 women, 454
civilians were injured, 12 292 residential and non-residential
settlements in total, 288 vehicles were damaged, and 1,018 farms
were found to be damaged.
In the period from September 27 to November 10, 2020, Armenia
shelled Tartar, Agjabedi, and Goranboy districts, located both on
the battlefield and outside the conflict zone, using prohibited and
extremely dangerous phosphorus bombs 5 times at different
times.
On October 8, November 3, 4, and 8, the armed forces of Armenia
in the occupied territories of the Republic of Azerbaijan, as well
as the persons leading the military units located in the territory
of the Republic of Armenia and the criminal organizations created
by them, grossly violating the requirements of Geneva Convention,
dated 1949, on the protection of civilians during armed conflicts,
using war methods leading to large scale destructions, to cause
extensive, long-lasting and serious damage to the settlements
located in the territories of Fuzuli and Tartar districts, where
the civilian population or individual civilians who did not
participate in the hostilities live, as well as to the environment
in violation of the basic principles of the UN Convention on
Biological Diversity, containing 3.6 kilograms of P-4 chemical
composition (white phosphorus) in each of the forests with valuable
and perennial trees, which are considered a natural resource of the
Republic of Azerbaijan, located in the territory of the city of
Shusha, situated in the village of Arayatli, Alkhanli, Tartar
district of Fuzuli district in order to intentionally kill people.
By firing at least 6 D-4-type 122-millimeter cannon shells and
deliberately burning the natural resources located in those areas,
Armenians caused a large amount of damage, planned and carried out
an aggressive war against Azerbaijan, and committed terrors and
heavy crime.
Despite all of these, the Azerbaijani Army, under the leadership
of Supreme Commander-in-Chief Ilham Aliyev, liberated its lands
from the occupation in 44 days of the“Iron Fist” operation, and
the territorial integrity of our country was ensured.
We commemorate with deep respect and esteem the memory of all
our Martyrs who died for the independence, sovereignty, and
territorial integrity of Azerbaijan on September 27, which is
celebrated as the Commemoration Day in our country by order of the
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
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