About 300 mines, unexploded ordnance seized in Karabakh

By Vafa Ismayilova

Azerbaijan's Mine Action Agency has seized about 300 mines and unexploded ordnance on the territories liberated from Armenia's occupation in 2020.

In its weekly report on mine-clearing operations carried out on the liberated territories, the agency said that from June 21 to 25, over 84 antipersonnel, 74 anti-tank mines, and 134 unexploded ordnance were found on the liberated territories. Some 111 hectares of land were cleared of mines and unexploded ordnance.

Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry press service's Barda regional department said that as part of operations carried out by the Khojavand region police, four assault rifles, one anti-tank missile system, one AQS-17 installation, 41 hand grenades, 14 different types of explosives, 30 submachine gun magazines, 4,600 various-caliber rounds, and other ammunition were seized and handed over to relevant agencies.

Over 140 Azerbaijan citizens have been killed or injured in mine explosions since November 10, 2020.

Armenia deliberately and constantly planted mines on Azerbaijani territories, in violation of the 1949 Geneva Convention, thereby being a major threat to regional peace, security and cooperation.

On June 12, Armenia submitted to Azerbaijan mine maps for Aghdam, where 97,000 mines were planted.

Yerevan still refuses to provide maps of hundreds of thousands of mines it had planted on other Azerbaijani territories over three decades of occupation.

Azerbaijan has made numerous appeals to international organizations and lodged an intergovernmental complaint to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) over Armenia's refusal to provide maps of mines in the formerly occupied territories.

The war between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended on November 10 with the signing of a trilateral peace deal by the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders.