Azerbaijan discovers Armenian-laid booby-traps in Khojavand PHOTO

The Azerbaijani Mine Action Agency (ANAMA) has discovered booby traps in abandoned houses in Khojavand’s Bulutan village during the demining operations.

The ANAMA press service told Caliber.Az that in particular, an improvised mine trap made of a PQ-7L missile warhead wrapped with cartridge tapes to increase the shrapnel effect and with a hand grenade fuse installed to increase the explosive force was found in a residential house in Bulutan village of Khojavand region.

At the same time, in front of a house, a PMN-E mine with F-1 model hand grenades placed under the package, as well as, an improvised explosive device consisting of 3 interconnected VOQ-17 weapon grenades, equipped with a MUV-type detonator, reinforced with nails to create fragmentation in a wide radius, were discovered in the ward of a perennial tree at the crossing between a neighborhood.

In addition, another booby trap made of a combination of an RQ-42 hand grenade and a POMZ-2M mine, mounted with a MUV-type detonator hidden in a plastic pipe above the entrance to a courtyard, as well as an OZM-72 model anti-personnel mine were discovered near the village's main road.

The detected landmines were deliberately placed by ethnic Armenians settled in these areas before departure to kill Azerbaijani civilians.

As a result of continuous non-technical and technical research, as well as demining operations conducted by ANAMA in the liberated areas, serious mining of civilian areas outside the former contact line areas was determined.

These booby traps, which the Armenians put exactly in selected residential locations, constitute an act of targeted terrorism against the civilian populace.

During the post-war period, 217 Azerbaijani citizens perished as a result of landmine incidents that took place outside the former contact line, such as Suarasi, Gulebird villages of Lachin region, Dashalti of Shusha region, Nüzgar, Mehdili of Jabrayil region, Bartaz of Zangilan region, Signag of Khojaly region, Khanlig village of Gubadli region, Yusifcanli, Shahbulag of Aghdam region, Sugovushan of Tartar region, Yukhari Veysalli, Yaglivend of Fuzuli region.

The large-scale attempts for rehabilitation and reconstruction, as well as the repatriation of former IDPs are severely hampered by the widespread mine contamination of the formerly occupied regions.

All such facts are once again an indicator of Armenia's insidious intention against the civilian population, a crime against humanity, the agency stressed.

ANAMA appeals to citizens once again to inform them not to enter unfamiliar areas and not to touch suspicious objects.