Iran’s Baku embassy condemns attacks on civilians, nonmilitary sites in Karabakh war

Iran’s embassy in Baku has strongly condemned recent attacks on civilians and nonmilitary targets during the ongoing clashes between the Republic of Azerbaijan and neighboring Armenia, urging both sites to respect the law of war and protect civilian lives.

Iran’s embassy made the remarks in an official statement on Sunday after Republic of Azerbaijan announced the same day that Armenian forces had fired rockets at its second city of Ganja, killing one civilian and wounding four.

According to Azerbaijan’s presidential aide, Hikmet Hajiyev, there were also civilian casualties in another Azeri region, Beylagan, which borders Karabakh.

The office of Azerbaijan’s prosecutor general says a total of 19 civilians were killed on October 3 and 63 others were injured while 44 nonmilitary sites and 181 houses were destroyed as a result of attacks by Armenian forces.

Armenia, on the other side, says Karabakh's main city Stepanakert, which has been under artillery fire since Friday, was hit again on Sunday and according to witness there were regular explosions and clouds of black smoke rising in parts of the city.

Reflecting on the aforesaid developments, the Iranian embassy urged both warring parties to respect human rights as well as the international humanitarian law.

Reminding Baku and Yerevan of the international regulations governing armed conflicts, particularly the Fourth Geneva Convention on the protection of civilians during such conflicts, the Iranian embassy condemned any form of violation of the rights of innocent people and killing them as well as destruction of nonmilitary sites, buildings and installations while condoling with the families who have lost their loved ones in the ongoing conflict.

Intense fighting rages on between Republic of Azerbaijan and Republic of Armenia over the Karabakh region, with Baku claiming to have captured a string of villages in heavy clashes over the mountain enclave.

As fierce clashes between the two South Caucasus neighbors entered the eighth day on Sunday, local sources reported new strikes followed by several explosions in Khankendi, the main city of the breakaway region of Karabakh.

Azerbaijani authorities said they took "retaliatory measures" after rocket fire by Armenia-backed troops from the city which Armenians call Stepanakert.

During a telephone conversation with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on Wednesday, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani called on Armenia and Azerbaijan to show restraint and reject any foreign interference over the Karabakh dispute.

Rouhani voiced concern about the ongoing fighting over the Karabakh territory and underlined the need for regional peace, stability and security.

SS