Armenia fires cluster rocket at Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline
By Ayya Lmahamad
Armenia has attacked Baku-Tbilisi-Jeyhan pipeline that takes Azerbaijani oil to Wetern markets via Georgia and Turkey.
“Armenia has fired a cluster rocket to Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline. In vicinity of Yevlakh reion, a rocket landed 10 meters away from BTC piepeline,” Azerbaijani Presidential Aide Hikmat Hajiyev said in Twitter late on October 6.
Hajiyev said that “300+ Cluster bomblets ejected around. No damage to pipeline. ANAMA is in operation.”
The presidential aide described the latest incident as “desperate attempts of Armenia to attack energy infrastructure.”
Moreover, Hajiyev noted that in two instances rocket projectiles with cluster munitions fired by Armenia were registered in the vicinity of Goranboy region close to villages on October 6.
"Armenia actively uses cluster munitions against residential areas of Azerbaijan. Facts were recorded on the spot. ANAMA is in operation," Hajiyev twitted.
Recent missile attacks of Armenia reaffirmed such aggressive nature of Armenia's military doctrine, the official said.
Hajiyev recalled that prior to the escalation of the tension on September 27, Armenia had openly threatened Azerbaijan's critical energy infrastructure - Mingachevir water reservoir with missile attacks.
The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry also twitted about attack on the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, saying "security and safety risks that Armenian political leadership creates in the region should no longer be neglected".
Use of cluster bombs in Goranboy
Armenian Armed Forces have also used four cluster bombs against the civilian population in Azerbaijan's Goranboy district, the use of which is prohibited by international conventions, Azerbaijan National Agency for Mine Action (ANAMA) has told local media.
“Exploded shells were scattered around the targeted territory. As a result of the attack, resident of Gizilhajili village of Goranboy district was killed," ANAMA said.
"During the inspection exercises carried out by the ANAMA’s specialists, 144 exploded 9N235 bombs, as well as 300 unexploded M85 bombs were found. We would like to note that these bombs were included in the class of prohibited ammunition in 2008 in accordance with the Convention on Cluster Ammunition (CCM),” ANAMA said.
Armenian armed forces launched a large-scale operation in the front-line zone on September 27 at 6 am, shelling the positions of the Azerbaijani army from large-calibre weapons, mortars, and artillery installations of various calibres.
On October 4, Armenia launched missile attack on Ganja, Azerbaijan's second largest populated city. There were also attacks on Mingachevir city that has a hydroelectric power station as well as on Khizi and Abheron region on the same day.
Azerbaijan and Armenia are locked in a conflict over Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh breakaway region, which along with seven adjacent regions was occupied by Armenian forces in a war in the early 1990s. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and around one million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities.
The OSCE Minsk Group co-chaired by the United States, Russia and France has been mediating the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict since the signing of the volatile cease-fire agreement in 1994. The Minsk Group’s efforts have resulted in no progress and to this date, Armenia has failed to abide by the UN Security Council resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884) that demand the withdrawal of Armenian military forces from the occupied territories of Azerbaijan.
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