The Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan announced an anti-terrorist operation in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the authorities in Baku, it is an "anti-terrorist measures of a local nature", and their goal is "restoration of the constitutional order".

The former Minister of State of Nagorno-Karabakh, Ruben Vardanyan, stated that massive artillery shelling had begun in the unrecognized republic.

Azerbaijan's Ministry of Defense assures that civilians and civilian infrastructure will not be targeted in the operation.

According to the department, the strikes will be aimed at the positions of the "formations of the Armenian armed forces, their long-term firing points", as well as at "military means and objects of military purpose".

It is specified that the command of the Russian peacekeeping contingent and the leadership of the joint Turkish-Russian monitoring center were informed about the operation.

Azerbaijan-Armenia hostilities. An overview of the events will be posted in this thread.

Air alarm, drone noises and gunfire is heard in the Karabakh region.

1/X pic.twitter.com/1m1vuFHrWR

— NOELREPORTS ???????? ???????? (@NOELreports) September 19, 2023

According to the Azerbaijani side, the operation was launched to ensure the provisions of the tripartite statement concluded with Armenia and Russia, as well as to quell "large-scale provocations in the Karabakh economic region."

Among other reasons are the disarmament and withdrawal of Armenian armed forces formations, neutralization of their military infrastructure, ensuring the safety of the civilian population returning to "liberated territories from occupation" and "restoring the constitutional order of the Republic of Azerbaijan," it is said in the message.

Minutes after the announcement of the anti-terrorist operation in Nagorno-Karabakh, a number of videos appeared on Telegram showing Azerbaijani attack drones and rockets of Baku forces flying over Stepanakert, destroying Armenia's air defense systems.

#BREAKING

????????????????

Azerbaijan has announced the start of a "anti terrorist" operation against the self-proclaimed Karabakh Republic with the aim of disarming it.

Azerbaijani airspace now closed to Armenia.

Azerbaijan says it will not target civilian infrastructure or… https://t.co/FCYDaKXnbg pic.twitter.com/0jzhiIlsqJ

— Casus Belli (@casusbellii) September 19, 2023

In the region, there are frequent failures of mobile connections at the moment.

Follow Novinite.com on Twitter and Facebook

Write to us at editors@novinite.com

Информирайте се на Български - Novinite.bg