Order Given to Not Fire at the Military: 'Hraparak'

'Hraparak' newspaper reports: 'The reason for the armed clashes near Tegh village the day before lies in the abandonment prevalent in the military, which was indirectly confirmed by the authorities themselves yesterday. From the Q&A session held in the National Assembly and interviews with several representatives of the ruling 'Civil Contract' party, it became clear that specifically the Armenian defenders in Tegh village had been left to fate, with neither the positions properly defined nor trenches available. Furthermore, the responsibility to communicate with the Azerbaijanis was placed on the defenders and command staff.

It became evident that indeed an order has been given to the military to not fire. It should be noted that in the video released by the Ministry of Defense regarding the events in Tegh, it can be seen that an Azerbaijani pickup approaches without our forces firing. Representatives of the ruling party from Syunik, Narek Ghahramanyan and Armen Khachatryan, explained yesterday that they did not fire because there were supposed to be negotiations between Azerbaijani and Armenian commanders on positional matters.

'Negotiation is a broad concept; even an agreement on a minor issue can be considered a form of negotiation. Typically, there are officers present on site who find operational solutions in difficult situations, often after clarifying with their commanders,' they stated. However, ultimately, remaining steadfast in their position, they declared that what transpired was not a result of failed negotiations but rather a provocation by the Azerbaijanis.

'I fully agree that it is a provocation; in that case, why was no fire opened? Do we have the right to put servicemen at risk?' asked MP Tigran Abrahamyan. However, the deputy minister did not provide a clear answer to this question either, thereby confirming that an order to not fire has indeed been issued to the military.'