10 October 2005 -- Azerbaijan's military said today that an Azerbaijani soldier was killed during a firefight with ethnic Armenian forces near the disputed enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Defense Ministry spokesman Ilgar Verdiev said the 19-year-old conscript was killed on 9 October in the gunfire exchange on the cease-fire line that separates Azerbaijani and Armenian-backed troops.
Verdiev said the Armenian forces started the shooting, and Azerbaijani forces responded. Armenian officials could not be immediately be reached for comment.
Nagorno-Karabakh and swaths of surrounding territory inside Azerbaijan have been under control of ethnic Armenians since a six-year war against Azerbaijan ended with a 1994 cease-fire.
The enclave's status remains unresolved, and tensions remain high along the cease-fire line with both sides regularly exchanging fire.
(AP)
Verdiev said the Armenian forces started the shooting, and Azerbaijani forces responded. Armenian officials could not be immediately be reached for comment.
Nagorno-Karabakh and swaths of surrounding territory inside Azerbaijan have been under control of ethnic Armenians since a six-year war against Azerbaijan ended with a 1994 cease-fire.
The enclave's status remains unresolved, and tensions remain high along the cease-fire line with both sides regularly exchanging fire.
(AP)