Military commander sacked after deadly shooting
BAKU – Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev dismissed a military commander after a shooting that caused several non-combat deaths in a military unit on Sunday.
Chingiz Shafiyev, who also saw his military rank downgraded, will be succeeded by Lieut.-Gen. Rovshan Akbarov, a national hero.
Seven Azerbaijani soldiers, aged 20 or 21, were killed at the military unit, the Defense Ministry said, calling the incident "a serious crime". Causes of the incident were not disclosed, but reports said that a soldier at the military unit, which is based in the country’s western Goygol region, had opened fire from a submachine gun, killing his fellow servicemen.
The Defense Ministry and Military Prosecutor's Office have launched an investigation.
In January 2010, two Azerbaijani soldiers opened fire on a group of officers, killing four and wounding two before the shooters committed suicide.
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