Baku, Azerbaijan, July 7

By Elmira Tariverdiyeva – Trend:

Pakistan condemns targeting of civilians in Azerbaijan by Armenia, said the Pakistani Foreign Ministry July 7.

“We condemn the targeting of civilians in Azerbaijan by the Armenian forces in which, among others, a 2-year old girl has lost her life.”

“We understand the sentiments of the Azerbaijan people in this situation,” the Foreign Ministry said, adding that Pakistan is experiencing similar feelings in connection with the situation around Kashmir.

On July 4 at about 20:40 (GMT+4 hours), the Armenian armed forces, using 82-mm and 120-mm mortars and grenade launchers, shelled the Alkhanly village of Azerbaijan’s Fuzuli district. As a result of this provocation, the residents of the village Sahiba Allahverdiyeva, 50, and Zahra Guliyeva, 2, were killed. Salminaz Guliyeva, 52, who got wounded, was taken to the hospital and was operated on.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts.