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Three Azerbaijani soldiers detained by Armenian forces in Nagono-Karabakh
Associated Press Worldstream
February 18, 2005 Friday
YEREVAN, Armenia -- Three Azerbaijani soldiers were detained in
Nagorno-Karabakh, where a tense cease-fire holds more than 10 years
after ethnic Armenian and Azerbaijani forces went to war over the
disputed enclave, officials said Friday.
The soldiers were captured by ethnic Armenian forces Tuesday after
they crossed the line of control that separates the two sides in the
northeastern section of the enclave, Nagorno-Karabakh law enforcement
officials said.
The soldiers were being interrogated, the officials said.
Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry confirmed the capture.
The two sides regularly exchange gunfire across the line of control,
and troops from one side or another are occasionally caught crossing
into enemy territory. Officials with the International Red Cross
typically negotiate prisoner exchanges.
Ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia drove Azerbaijani troops out
of Nagorno-Karabakh in the 1990s during a six-year war that killed
some 30,000 people and sent 1 million fleeing from their homes.
A cease-fire was reached in 1994, but the final status of the enclave,
whose self-proclaimed sovereignty is not recognized internationally,
has not been determined. The unresolved dispute damages both nations'
economies and the threat of renewed war continues to hang over
the region.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been involved in an international effort
to reach a settlement, sponsored by the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe.
Associated Press Worldstream
February 18, 2005 Friday
YEREVAN, Armenia -- Three Azerbaijani soldiers were detained in
Nagorno-Karabakh, where a tense cease-fire holds more than 10 years
after ethnic Armenian and Azerbaijani forces went to war over the
disputed enclave, officials said Friday.
The soldiers were captured by ethnic Armenian forces Tuesday after
they crossed the line of control that separates the two sides in the
northeastern section of the enclave, Nagorno-Karabakh law enforcement
officials said.
The soldiers were being interrogated, the officials said.
Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry confirmed the capture.
The two sides regularly exchange gunfire across the line of control,
and troops from one side or another are occasionally caught crossing
into enemy territory. Officials with the International Red Cross
typically negotiate prisoner exchanges.
Ethnic Armenian forces backed by Armenia drove Azerbaijani troops out
of Nagorno-Karabakh in the 1990s during a six-year war that killed
some 30,000 people and sent 1 million fleeing from their homes.
A cease-fire was reached in 1994, but the final status of the enclave,
whose self-proclaimed sovereignty is not recognized internationally,
has not been determined. The unresolved dispute damages both nations'
economies and the threat of renewed war continues to hang over
the region.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been involved in an international effort
to reach a settlement, sponsored by the Organization for Security
and Cooperation in Europe.