Armenian Soldier Killed this Morning after Tense Night at the Border

Armenian soldier manning a military post.

At around 10:30 a.m. this morning, Hayk Tevoyan, a contract soldier of the Armenian Armed Forces was killed by Azerbaijani military forces in the Tavush region of northeastern Armenia.

Tevoyan was shot in the neck by an Azerbaijani sniper, using large caliber machine gun.

A number of border villages in the Tavush marz came under heavy Azerbaijani attack on the evening of September 2-3. At the time, Armenia’s Defense Ministry Spokesperson Artsrun Hovhannisyan said the situation along the Armenia-Azerbaijan state border was tense as heavy shelling continued.

In a statement to Armenpress, Hovhannisyan said, “I can say that gunfire is continuing in the direction of border villages in Tavush marz. The adversary is using heavy artillery and I would categorize the situation as very serious, tense. Armenia’s military forces are responding to the adversary’s gunfire.”

Ceasefire violations along the Armenia-Azerbaijan state border have become a frequent part of life for villagers, with occasional flare-ups of tension. The last few days, however, have seen an increase of gunfire and shelling from Azerbaijani military posts stationed a few hundred meters away from Armenian settlements.

The General Military Investigative Department of the Republic of Armenia’s Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case in the killing of the soldier.

CivilNet’s crew is currently in the Tavush marz and are reporting that the situation at the moment is calm; there is no gunfire but there is a great amount of unease among the villagers.