Over the past 24 hours, Armenia’s armed forces have 102 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry told APA on April 19.

Armenians were using sniper rifles and 60-mm mortars.

The Azerbaijani army positions in Gaymagli, Gushchu Ayrim, Ashaghi Eskipara, Mazam, Bala Jafarli villages and on nameless heights in Gazakh district were shelled from the Armenian army positions located in Voskevan village and on nameless heights in Noyemberyan district, in Berkaber village and on nameless heights in Armenia’s Ijevan district.

Armenia’s armed units stationed in Chinari village of Berd district opened fire at the Azerbaijani army positions located in Aghbulag, Munjuglu villages of Tovuz district.

Meanwhile, the Azerbaijani army positions located on nameless heights in Gadabay district came under fire from the Armenian army positions located on nameless heights in Krasnoselsk district.

Positions of the Azerbaijani army were also shelled from the positions located near the Armenian-occupied Chilaburt village of Tartar district, Namirli, Taghibeyli, Shikhlar, Bash Garvand, Abdinli, Novruzlu, Marzili villages of Aghdam district, Kuropatkino village of Khojavend district, Garvand, Garakhanbeyli, Horadiz villages of Fuzuli district, as well as from the positions located on nameless heights in Goranboy, Tartar, Aghdam, Khojavend, Fuzuliand Jabrayil districts.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict entered its modern phase when the Armenian SRR made territorial claims against the Azerbaijani SSR in 1988.

A fierce war broke out between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. As a result of the war, Armenian armed forces occupied some 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory which includes Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent districts (Lachin, Kalbajar, Aghdam, Fuzuli, Jabrayil, Gubadli and Zangilan), and over a million Azerbaijanis became refugees and internally displaced people.

The military operations finally came to an end when Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in Bishkek in 1994.

Dealing with the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the OSCEMinsk Group, which was created after the meeting of the CSCE (OSCE after the Budapest summit held in December 1994) Ministerial Council in Helsinki on 24 March 1992. The Group’s members include Azerbaijan, Armenia, Russia, the United States, France, Italy, Germany, Turkey, Belarus, Finland and Sweden.

Besides, the OSCE Minsk Group has a co-chairmanship institution, comprised of Russian, the US and French co-chairs, which began operating in 1996.

Resolutions 822, 853, 874 and 884 of the UN Security Council, which were passed in short intervals in 1993, and other resolutions adopted by the UN General Assembly, PACE, OSCE, OIC, and other organizations require Armenia to unconditionally withdraw its troops from Nagorno-Karabakh.

Source  en.apa.az