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Deliberate fires by Armenians spread to frontline settlements

11 June 2015 16:07 (UTC+04:00)
Deliberate fires by Armenians spread to frontline settlements

By Sara Rajabova

Armenian armed forces continue to deliberately set fires within occupied Azerbaijani territories over the last several days.

Local media outlets reported that the massive fires, which were originally set in occupied part of Azerbaijan’s Aghdam region, had spread to villages located near the contact line of Armenian-Azerbaijani troops.

The fires engulfed more territory last night, approaching Aghdam’s Chiragli and Mirashelli villages and quickly encompassing cemeteries in the villages of Bash Garvand and Mirashelli along the line of contact.

Authorities have taken preventive measures to make sure the fires do not spread into arable land. The blaze was extinguished early morning on June 10.

Armenian armed forces often commit large-scale arsons in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, particularly in summer.

Border villages in the Aghdam region frequently face such destructive acts by Armenian soldiers.

This is the second arson committed by Armenian troops within the past two weeks. A previous fire, started by Armenians on May 28 in Aghdam’s occupied Bash Garvend village, expanded throughout the neutral zone and then reached the border villages of Orta Garvend and Chiragli.

Local fire departments succeeded in extinguishing the fire, saving residences, infrastructure, and arable land.

Such attacks are indicators that the Armenian leadership deliberately seeks to cause harm to Azerbaijan and its people by making life at the border difficult and risky.

Further risks arise from fleeing rodents and poisonous snakes, which flock to lowland areas in the country and enter private farms and fields to escape the flames.

Arsons have thus far caused immeasurable damage to flora and fauna. Armenians have deliberately set fires in the spring and summer months when crops are cultivated and harvested, with the aim of adversely affecting agriculture in the villages along the front line.

Persistent fires in the occupied territories and the protected areas along the Araz River are destroying the integrity of the soil used for cultivation. This has bitter ramifications for the environment.

To date, the towns of Agdam, Fizuli, Jabrayil, Terter and Khojavand, situated along the troops' line of contact, have been deliberately targeted by Armenians. A total of 96,000 hectares of pastures, hayfields, and forest have thus far been destroyed by Armenian arsonists and the once fertile soil cannot be tilled.

Armenia captured Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts from Azerbaijan in a war that followed the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and nearly 1 million were displaced as a result of the war.

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Sara Rajabova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @SaraRajabova

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz

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