Residents of Norabakh and Sotk Speak Out on Azerbaijani Aggression

Recently, the consequences of Azerbaijani aggression were severe. The Armenian side suffered three fatalities and two injuries. Vazgen Asatryan, the head of the Norabakh administrative region in Gegharkunik Province, informed Factinfo that gunfire from the Azerbaijani armed forces was heard in the village; however, there was no panic among residents. The enemy positions are not far from the village, but provocations towards the village have not occurred. After midnight, the enemy ceased fire.

"The shooting stopped during the night. It began around 4:30 PM to 5:00 PM and lasted until 6:00 PM, with two more rounds of fire from larger caliber weapons after that, and then it ceased. They are about 1.5 kilometers away from the village by air and approximately 2 kilometers via road," said Asatryan. The gunfire targeted positions. According to him, the enemy should not be trusted. There has not been such large-scale gunfire around the village before. "Who trusts the Azerbaijanis? They shoot and leave. Recently, we haven't had such shooting in our area; this is the first time like this," the community leader stated.

He added that the Armenian soldiers at the positions did not allow the residents to approach. He personally contacted the military, indicating that if help was needed, the residents could assist, but they were told that there was no necessity. Ambulances were also not seen in the village. "There are two roads going near our village, one going the opposite way and is not visible, the other goes through the village; perhaps the ambulance passed near Zod, we didn’t see it, but the vehicle went up," Asatryan noted, emphasizing that none of the deceased soldiers were residents of Norabakh.

Sevak Khachatryan, a resident of the Sotk area, also told Factinfo that they heard the sounds of artillery used by the enemy from their village. "Artillery was used, and the sounds were audible. We didn’t see UAVs, but we heard the sounds from around 2:00 PM until 10:00 PM. The gunfire occurred from the upper Shorzha area towards Norabakh and Kut, but not as intensely as in the upper Shorzha and Norabakh areas," Khachatryan stated. He pointed out that residents usually wait at home during such incidents and do not take action, simply anxiously waiting. No gunfire was heard today from the Soti area.

It is noteworthy that the day before, around 3:15 PM, Azerbaijani military units opened fire towards Armenian combat positions located in the Upper Shorzha area of Gegharkunik Province, resulting in one serviceman sustaining a medium-level gunshot wound. Around 5:30 PM, Azerbaijani military units resumed fire towards Armenian positions located on the eastern flank of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, utilizing artillery and drones. As a result of the provocations carried out by Azerbaijani units, soldiers of the Armenian Ministry of Defense from unit N were killed, including private Arthur Artomi Mikayelyan (born 2002) and junior sergeant Rudik Rafiki Garibyan (born 2002). The Armenian side also reported two injuries, but their lives are not in danger. At midnight, the body of Armenian serviceman private Vahan Vachagani Babayan (born 2003) was found with a fatal gunshot wound.