An Armenian reconnaissance and sabotage unit attacked Azerbaijani positions near the villages of Seysulan and Qapanli in Tartar District at 6 a.m. today, the Defense Ministry said on its website.

Armenians were forced to withdraw following a firefight near Azerbaijani trenches, the ministry said, adding that it recorded 93 cases of ceasefire violations by Armenian troops in the past 24 hours.

An Azerbaijani army officer was killed by Armenian sniper fire in Tartar yesterday. An Armenian soldier was shot dead the day before. 

Armenians captured nearly 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s internationally-recognized territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding districts, in a war after the Soviet Union’s breakup in 1991.

More than 20,000 people were killed and nearly 1 million Azerbaijanis displaced before Russia brokered a ceasefire in 1994.

The sides have yet to sign a peace agreement despite more than 20 years of talks mediated by the US, Russia and France.

ANN.Az