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Non-Combat Losses; ... Are Substantial

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  • Non-Combat Losses; ... Are Substantial

    NON-COMBAT LOSSES; ... ARE SUBSTANTIAL
    R. Orujev

    Source: Ekho (Baku), December 1, 2006, EV
    Agency WPS
    DEFENSE and SECURITY (Russia)
    December 6, 2006 Wednesday

    SITUATION IN THE AREAS WHERE AZERBAIJANI AND ARMENIAN TROOPS FACE
    EACH OTHER REMAINS TRICKY; Update on the situation in the areas where
    Azerbaijani and Armenian regular armies face each other.

    Another episode of the cease-fire regime violation is reported.

    Azerbaijani positions came under automatic rifle fire from the
    territory of the settlement of Bash Gervend in the Agdam district
    occupied by the Armenians. It began at approximately 2315 hours on
    November 29. No information on casualties is available.

    It is common knowledge that violations of this kind occur regularly,
    at least once a week.

    Ramiz Melikov of the Press Service of the Defense Ministry told Ekho
    that the Armenians kept violating the cease-fire regime. "I do not
    see any improvement from past years," Melikov said.

    According to Melikov, the Defense Ministry is not counting loss of
    life in provocations engineered by the Armenians. "We do not reveal
    this information," he said. "As for the losses, they are quite frequent
    on both sides."

    "Some tranquility in areas in question always follows the coming of
    cold," independent military expert Uzeir Jafarov told this newspaper.

    "By late December, however, we will probably see mass violations of
    the cease-fire regime. It happens every year. Generally speaking,
    the situation there is not any better than it was these last 3-5 years.

    Skirmishes continue all along the front. They are sometimes mass,
    sometimes episodic... They usually happen when replacement of the
    troops is carried out. Young soldiers right from boot camp want to
    see how their weapons work. With commanders' permission of course. It
    is usually true of sharpshooters. I'm under the impression that the
    Armenian side will try to escalate tension now that the latest round
    of the Karabakh talks is over. The cease-fire regime will be frequently
    violated now."

    "Our Organization of Retired Officers monitor the state of affairs
    with Azerbaijani losses when the cease-fire regime is in effect,"
    Jafarov said. "We draw our conclusions from what is published in
    the media and what our comrades-in-arms tell us. The Armed Forces
    of Azerbaijan lost 50 servicemen this year. Discounting the wounded
    and those who triggered landmines. Most men were lost to Armenian
    sharpshooters. The 2005 figures were more or less similar. We've been
    compiling this information since 1994. The Defense Ministry classified
    these figures, but I'm telling you right here and now that we lost
    several thousands men. They are the so-called non-combat losses."

    From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
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