Wednesday 05 / February / 2025
Fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan flared up again on Monday night, with both sides reporting intense artillery shelling.
At around midnight, Azerbaijani forces shelled Armenian troops at three locations along the border. Azerbaijan said it was responding to a buildup of Armenian landmines and weapons near the border.
Armenia fired back in retaliation.
The fighting took place in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, an area within Azerbaijan where ethnic Armenian separatists declared a breakaway republic — later known as Artsakh — in 1991.
At a press briefing early on Tuesday, Armenian defense spokesperson Aram Torosyan said the situation remains "extremely tense" as fighting continues.
Armenia, Azerbaijan trade blame for violence
Both countries claimed to have launched proportionate responses against what they saw as provocations from the other side.
"At 00:05 a.m. [local time] on Tuesday, Azerbaijan launched intensive shelling, with artillery and large-caliber firearms, against Armenian military positions in the direction of the cities of Goris, Sotk, and Jermuk," Armenia's defense ministry said.
However, Azerbaijan accused Armenian forces of carrying out "large-scale subversive acts" earlier on Monday night near the border districts of Dashkesan, Kelbajar and Lachin by placing landmines and mobilizing weapons.
"The countermeasures taken by the Azerbaijani military in response to the provocation by the Armenian military are local and directed against legitimate military objects that serve as firing points," Azerbaijan's defense ministry added.
Armenian forces said they subsequently launched a "proportionate" response. The Azerbaijani defense ministry said its troops came under "intense shelling from weapons of various caliber, including mortars, by units of the Armenian army."
Both sides acknowledged troop casualties but did not confirm numbers.
