THREE ARMED MEN WHO PENETRATED INTO ARMENIA FROM AZERBAIJAN KILLED AS A RESULT OF ACTIONS TAKEN ON MARCH 3
Noyan Tapan
March 12, 2010
YEREVAN, MARCH 12, NOYAN TAPAN. Another trespassing incident was
recorded a few days ago. A subversive reconnaissance group that
penetrated into the territory of Armenia from Azerbaijan to reconnoitre
and obtain information was rendered harmless. According to the press
service of the RA Ministry of Defence, such groups also regularly
stole cattle.
At about 1.30 am on March 3, Armenian servicemen discovered a group of
5 plain-clothes men near the village of Koti in Tavush marz. The group
members had penetrated into Armenia from the territory of Azerbaijan
and were armed with special weapons for subversive activity. The
Armenian servicemen opened warning fire. A skirmish began, as a
result of which one member of the subversive group was wounded,
captured and later died while being taken to hospital.
The second wounded man and other members of the group managed to
escape into Azerbaijan.
The obtained information confirmed that the Azerbaijani side intended
to send a few more reconnaissance groups into Armenia. To prevent
their possible activities, the special sub-units of Armenian armed
forces took additional steps on protecting the indicated section of
the border.
Later on the same day – at about 9 pm, another group of 3 persons in
black camouflage uniforms, who penetrated from Azerbaijan and had
devices with optical sights and submachine guns, was spotted near
the village of Koti. The group was moving towards the nearest forest.
The analysis of the incidents shows that this group acted with the
assistance of another group firing from the rear. As a result of
measures taken by the Armenian side, the armed Azerbaijanians suffered
losses and retreated, leaving two bodies in the neutral zone. The
body of one killed Azerbaijanian was carried from the neutral zone
to Armenia at about 6 am on March 5.
As a whole, 3 armed men from Azerbaijan were killed as a consequence
of the measures taken on March 3. The bodies of two of them are in
Armenia. A person named Ibrahim was wounded, he managed to reach the
territory of Azerbaijan.
The names of several other armed Azerbaijanians were also established
soon: they are Vali Valiyev, Sagif Namazov from the village of
Kyosalar, and certain Nizami and Khagani.
The cell phone of Hasan (one of the two killed men, whose bodies are
now in Armenia) had videos showing the funeral of a martyr-shahid,
the special training of police troops in Kazakh, and the Azan
religious ceremony.
It is not ruled out that the killed trespassers are members of Vahabits
– an extremist radical Islamist organization. Their personal items
and the tattoos on different parts of their bodies give cause to
assume that they were connected to Azerbaijani special service and
underwent special training.