Baku denies shelling of village in southern Armenia despite presented evidence
Shelling of Khoznavar village
Last night, Azerbaijani armed forces opened fire once again in the direction of the village of Khoznavar in Armenia’s Syunik Province. According to the Armenian Defence Ministry, a residential house was damaged, but no casualties were reported.
Baku denies this information, claiming that “Azerbaijani army units never fire at civilians or civilian infrastructure.” Moreover, Azerbaijan’s Defence Ministry accuses the Armenian side of “spreading false information to distort international perception and lay the groundwork for further provocations.” This has already led Armenian experts to suggest that Baku may soon issue more unfounded accusations of shelling from Armenia.
According to ruling party MP Armen Khachatryan, Baku’s goal is to sow panic among residents of the border areas. Meanwhile, opposition MP Tigran Abrahamyan believes these deliberate and systematic violations must be taken more seriously.
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Armenian Defence Ministry releases statement with photos of damage
The Armenian Defence Ministry reports that Azerbaijani armed forces opened fire on the village of Khoznavar on the night of 29 May. This time, the shelling was relatively brief — from 01:00 to 01:15.
“We call on the Azerbaijani side to investigate the shelling of the residential house in Khoznavar and to issue a public explanation,” the statement reads.
Photos released by the Armenian Defence Ministry confirm the shelling of a residential house in the village of Khoznavar. The windows of the house were damaged.
Investigation underway to determine circumstances of the incident
MP Armen Khachatryan from the ruling Civil Contract faction notes that this is not the first such incident. Since mid-March, local residents and the Defence Ministry have periodically reported Azerbaijani fire. According to Khachatryan, the details of the incident will become clearer once the examination results are in:
“A number of forensic and ballistic examinations have been ordered. Criminal cases have been opened to determine the direction of the bullets. It must be established whether this was a targeted attack, an accidental shooting, or due to other circumstances.”
Opposition MP urges greater vigilance
Tigran Abrahamyan, secretary of the opposition “I Have Honour” faction, reminds that for the past 2–3 months, the Armenian public has been hearing optimistic statements from various countries about the imminent resolution of the conflict. He warns that this is merely a façade concealing the real situation:
“In this context, a certain ‘comfort zone’ has emerged. There’s an impression that everything is moving towards peace. However, in reality, for the past 1.5 to 2 months, there have been deliberate and systematic violations by Azerbaijan along various sections of the frontline.”
The MP believes that the frequent shelling of the two villages in Syunik Province — Khoznavar and Khndzoresk — is due to their proximity to the border, suggesting that this has made them “easy targets” for the Azerbaijani Armed Forces.
At the same time, Abrahamyan calls for attention to warnings from the US and Russia. He appears to be referring to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s statement about the real risk of armed conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia. A similar warning was issued by Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov, who even pointed to a specific area of potential escalation:
“Tensions remain around Armenia’s Syunik Province.”
Armenia investigates Azerbaijani claims and denies violations — Baku remains silent
In early May, the Armenian Prime Minister’s Office reported an exchange of information with the Azerbaijani side regarding ceasefire violations. Armenian Security Council Secretary Armen Grigoryan stated that Yerevan had reviewed the data received via diplomatic channels from Baku. According to him, the investigation revealed that no such violations had been committed by the Armenian side. He also stressed that Azerbaijan was provided with detailed information on the findings.
“In addition, we shared with Baku information about violations committed by the Azerbaijani side. We expect these findings to serve as the basis for a thorough investigation,” Grigoryan said.
However, Baku has remained silent. There has been no information on whether any investigation into the data provided by Armenia has been launched.
