By Ruslan Rehimov

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AA):- Armenian forces on Sunday launched a missile attack on the Khizi and Absheron regions of Azerbaijan, according to a senior presidential official. Fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh continues. Hundreds have died on both sides in the fighting.

Hikmet Hajiyev, the assistant to the president and foreign policy chief for Azerbaijan’s presidency, said on Twitter that Armenian forces launched two 300-kilometer mid-range missiles on the regions.

One civilian was killed and 30 injured when rockets landed on residential areas on Ganja, Azerbaijan’s second largest city, 100km (60 miles) north of the Karabakh capital, Stepanakert, on Sunday, according to Azerbaijan officials.

Armenia said that Stepanakert which has been under attack since Friday, was hit again on Sunday.

President Ilham Aliyev of Azerbaijan said they had captured many villages. “Today the Azeri army raised the flag of Azerbaijan in Madagiz. Madagiz is ours,” he said.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on TV: “As of now, we already have significant human losses, both military and civilian, large quantities of military equipment are no longer usable, but the adversary still has not been able to solve any of its strategic issues.”

Both Armenia and Azerbaijan have claimed civilian deaths and injuries.

Earlier, Haciyev announced that Mingachevir, an industrial city in Azerbaijan, had also been targeted by an Armenian missile strike.

Upper Karabakh conflict

Relations between the two former Soviet republics have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Upper [Nagorno] Karabakh, an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.

Multiple UN resolutions, as well as many international organizations, demand the withdrawal of the invading forces.

The OSCE Minsk Group — co-chaired by France, Russia and the US — was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was agreed upon in 1994.

Many world powers including Russia, France, and the US have urged an immediate cease-fire. Turkey, meanwhile, has supported Baku’s right to self-defense.

Additional report by The Muslim News

[Photo: A view of the residential damage after Armenian army’s alleged attacks with long-range missiles, on October 04, 2020 in Ganja city of Azerbaijan.
Photographer:  Resul Rehimov/AA]