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A6 WORLD NEWS
Monday 5 october 2020

Azerbaijan says Armenia targets cities outside conflict zone

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AP) — cials have said nearly 200
The fighting between Ar- servicemen on their side
menian and Azerbaijani have died in the clashes so
forces continued Sunday far. Eighteen civilians have
over the separatist terri- been killed and more than
tory of Nagorno-Karabakh, 90 others wounded. Azer-
with Azerbaijan accusing baijani authorities haven't
Armenia of targeting the given details on their mili-
country's cities that are far tary casualties, but said 24
beyond the conflict zone. civilians were killed and 111
Hikmet Hajiyev, aide to others were wounded on
Azerbaijani President Ilkham their side.
Aliyev, said Sunday that Ar- Nagorno-Karabakh was a
menia targeted large cit- designated autonomous
ies Ganja and Mingachevir region within Azerbaijan
with missile strikes. Ganja, during the Soviet era. It
home to several hundred claimed independence
thousand residents and the from Azerbaijan in 1991,
country's second-largest about three months before
city, is located roughly 100 the Soviet Union's collapse.
kilometers (about 60 miles) A building of a residential area burns after night shelling by Azerbaijan's artillery during a military A full-scale war that broke
away from Stepanakert, conflict in self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, Stepanakert, Azerbaijan, early Sun- out in 1992 killed an esti-
Nagorno-Karabakh's capi- day, Oct. 4, 2020. mated 30,000 people.
tal, and so is Mingachevir. Associated Press By the time the war ended
The clashes erupted on in 1994, Armenian forces
Sept. 27 and have killed istry vehemently denied that any military objects on Stepanakert and target- not only held Nagorno-
dozens, marking the big- the claims. The ministry's had been hit in Ganja, but ing the civilian population Karabakh itself but sub-
gest escalation in the de- spokeswoman Shushan said the attack caused there. Nagorno-Karabakh's stantial areas outside the
cades-old conflict over the Stepanian wrote on Face- damage to civilian infra- leader Harutyunyan said territory's formal borders, in-
region, which lies within book that "no fire was structure. One civilian has that in response, his forces cluding Jabrayil, the town
Azerbaijan but is controlled opened from Armenia in been killed, and 32 others would target "military facili- Azerbaijan claimed to
by local ethnic Armenian the direction of Azerbaijan" sustained injuries, authori- ties permanently located in have taken on Sunday.
forces backed by Armenia. and called the accusations ties said. major cities of Azerbaijan." This week's fighting has
Hajiyev on Sunday tweeted "desperate convulsions of "Opening fire on the ter- In a statement issued later prompted calls for a cease-
a video depicting dam- the Azerbaijani side." ritory of Azerbaijan from on Sunday, Azerbaijan's De- fire from around the world.
aged buildings, and called Nagorno-Karabakh's lead- the territory of Armenia is fense Ministry rejected ac- On Thursday, leaders of
it the result of "Armenia's er, Arayik Harutyunyan, clearly provocative and cusations of targeting civil- Russia, France and the Unit-
massive missile attacks said on Facebook that he expands the zone of hos- ians and civilian infrastruc- ed States — co-chairs of
against dense residential ordered "rocket attacks to tilities," Azerbaijani Defense ture. Aliyev, the Azerbaijani the so-called Minsk Group,
areas" in Ganja. It wasn't neutralize military objects" Minister Zakir Hasanov said president, tweeted Sunday which was set up by the Or-
immediately possible to in Ganja, but later told in a statement Sunday. that the country's troops ganization for Security and
verify the authenticity of his forces to stop firing to According to Hajiyev, no "liberated from occupation Cooperation in Europe in
the video. Hajiyev said in avoid civilian casualties. serious damage was inflict- the city of Jabrayil and sev- 1992 to resolve the conflict
another tweet on Sunday His spokesman Vahram ed on the infrastructure in eral surrounding villages." — issued a joint statement
evening that Armenian Poghosyan told Armenian Mingachevir, but "civilians Nagorno-Karabakh's offi- calling for an immediate
forces also hit Mingachevir, media on Sunday evening (have been) wounded." cials rejected the claim as cease-fire and "resuming
which "hosts a water res- there was no reason for Na- As the fighting resumed untrue, saying the territory's substantive negotiations
ervoir and key electricity gorno-Karabakh forces to Sunday morning, Armenian army "is controlling the situ- ... under the auspices of
plant," with a missile strike. target Mingachevir. officials accused Azerbai- ation in all directions." the OSCE Minsk Group co-
Armenia's Defense Min- Azerbaijani officials denied jan of carrying out strikes Nagorno-Karabakh offi- chairs."q

Mali releases 180 jihadists in likely prisoner exchange

By BABA AHMED were released on Saturday and buktu at the time of his abduc- he was injured by broken glass
BAMAKO, Mali (AP) — Malian another 110 on Sunday, accord- tion. His bodyguard was killed in from the attack.
authorities have released 180 Is- ing to an official who spoke on the attack, and the only proof of Islamic militants are active
lamic extremists from a prison in condition of anonymity due to the life has been a handwritten letter throughout northern and cen-
the capital and flown them to the sensitivity of the matter. delivered back in August. tral Mali, though typically launch
country's north, an official con- There was no immediate com- Government efforts to negotiate attacks on the Malian military
firmed late Sunday, fueling specu- ment late Sunday from Mali's tran- his release were thrown into up- and U.N. peacekeepers. A 2013
lation that a prominent opposition sitional government, which was heaval after the coup that forced French-led military operation dis-
politician held by jihadists could only recently put in place more President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita persed the jihadists, who then
soon be freed after more than six than a month after the country's from power, though it did not ap- regrouped and have expanded
months in captivity. democratically elected president pear progress was being made their reach in the years since.
The militants who abducted Sou- was ousted in a military coup. toward Cisse's release. Many fear that the political up-
maila Cisse back in late March Cisse, a 70-year-old who has run Little is known about Cisse's con- heaval in Mali since the coup will
were believed to be seeking a for Mali's presidency three times, ditions in captivity after the initial allow them to do so again, a fear
prisoner exchange with the Ma- was campaigning ahead of leg- abduction, when the assailants underscored by the weekend pris-
lian government. Some 70 men islative elections not far from Tim- opened fire on his vehicule and oner release.q