9 Soldiers Found Today, Most of Whom Are from Armavir Region

9 soldiers, whose bodies were discovered today, December 17, near the Old Tager-Khztaberd positions in the Hadrut region, are the same soldiers who had been reported captured days ago in the direction of Old Tager. According to NEWS.am, most of them are from the Armavir region and were serving as part of the Mobilization Force (MOB).

Their unit consisted of 11 members. There is no news regarding two other soldiers. They were part of a 120-member battalion that found itself encircled after an Azerbaijani attack in the direction of Old Tager. After negotiations with the Azerbaijani forces, 83 soldiers from the battalion managed to break free from the encirclement on December 12.

Earlier, the village heads of Old Tager and Khztaberd confirmed that around a dozen Armenian soldiers had been captured in the direction of Old Tager.

Just the day before, Azerbaijani media had circulated a video of recently killed Armenian soldiers. It is worth mentioning that following the attack on Old Tager and Khztaberd by Azerbaijan, there had been circulating reports on the internet for a long time regarding over a hundred captives. Only yesterday did official information confirm that the fate of 73 individuals performing combat duty in the direction of the two villages in Hadrut remains unknown. According to our information, these soldiers are from the MOB of Shirak region and were holding the positions in Khztaberd. The 9 fallen soldiers belong to a different group and were guarding the positions in Old Tager.

It should be noted that on December 12, Azerbaijani armed units, having assembled additional personnel and military equipment, including heavy artillery, initiated an attack in violation of the stipulations of the trilateral declaration signed on November 9, targeting the villages of Old Tager and Khztaberd in the Hadrut region of the Republic of Artsakh. The villages of Old Tager and Khztaberd are now under Azerbaijani control. The Armenian side suffered 9 injuries, while the Azerbaijani side has also reported losses and injuries.