Armenia and Azerbaijan slaughter each other again

On Sunday, September 27, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military operation on the line of contact in Karabakh. Azerbaijan reported the capture of several settlements in the region, while Azeri President Ilham Aliyev announced that the Armenian side suffered serious damage.Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that Azerbaijan attacked the unrecognized republic of Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh declared martial law and mobilization. The Russian Foreign Ministry called for an immediate ceasefire in the conflict zone, while Turkey announced its support and readiness to help Azerbaijan.The hostilities began at 6 a.m. after the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry announced an intense shelling of Azerbaijani positions on the contact line in Karabakh and adjacent villages.The armed forces of Azerbaijan launched an active "counter-offensive operation" along the entire line of contact with Armenia, said Anar Eyvazov, press secretary of the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry. The purpose of the operation of the Azerbaijani military is to "prevent provocations" from the Armenian side, Azerbaijani officials said.According to Eyvazov, the Azerbaijani military destroyed a significant amount of equipment, military facilities and manpower of the enemy both on the front line and in the depths of defense. As many as 12 "Osa" ("Wasp") anti-aircraft missile systems were destroyed, the official said. "The Armed Forces of Azerbaijan had one combat helicopter damaged, but the pilot was able to land, no one was killed," the ministry spokesman added."The personnel and tank units, with the support of units of the rocket and artillery troops, front-line aviation and unmanned aerial vehicles, having detected manpower, military facilities and hardware of the Armenian Armed Forces on the front line and in the depths of the enemy's defense, destroy them," the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said in a statement.The Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan denied information about the destruction of Azerbaijani tanks, helicopters and UAVs by the Armenian military. "The information disseminated by the Armenian side about three destroyed tanks, two helicopters and three unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of the Azerbaijani army is a lie and disinformation," the ministry said. Twelve units of "OSA" anti-aircraft missile systems of Armenian air defense units were destroyed in different directions, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry reports. It also said that a combat helicopter of the Air Force of Azerbaijan was shot down, the crew survived. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said at a meeting of the Security Council that Azerbaijani troops inflicted serious damage on the enemy during the operation in the Karabakh conflict zone. Aliyev blamed the Armenian side for the aggravation in Karabakh and congratulated the Azerbaijani people "on the successful counteroffensive" and expressed confidence that it would lead to the restoration of the territorial integrity of the country.Vahram Poghosyan , the press secretary of the President of Nagorno-Karabakh wrote on his Facebook page that "the units of the defensive army of Nagorno Karabakh strike powerful blows to prevent the actions of the enemy."Azerbaijan uses Grad volley-fire systems to shell the city of Stepanakert and other settlements of Karabakh.The press secretary of the Armenian Defense Ministry, Shushan Stepanyan, said that the attacks of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces in several directions of the line of contact with Nagorno-Karabakh were repulsed. "The enemy suffered losses in manpower and military hardware. Three Azerbaijani tanks were destroyed. The fighting continues," Stepanyan wrote on her Facebook page.On Sunday morning, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that Azerbaijan attacked the unrecognized Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh.