Azerbaijan seizes backgammon with separatist symbols at Lachin checkpoint PHOTO

The Azerbaijani customs officers have confiscated a backgammon board with separatist symbols from a person of Armenian descent.

The person was crossing the Lachin checkpoint accompanied by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in the direction of Armenia on August 28, Report informs.

After checking the documents of the Armenian-born person, the officers of the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee and the State Border Guard Service inspected the citizen's bag.

The backgammon board with separatist symbols was confiscated.

On April 23, Azerbaijan began installing a checkpoint on the border with Armenia at the entrance of the Lachin road which connects the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan with Armenia.

According to the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, the border checkpoint's installation came as part of the efforts to prevent the continued systematic and large-scale misuse of the road by Armenia.

The ministry stated that over 2,700 anti-personnel landmines produced by Armenia in 2021 and detected in the Lachin and Kalbajar districts of Azerbaijan since August 2022 were illegally transported to the Karabakh region through the Lachin road.

Azerbaijan had been insisting on installing a checkpoint on the border with Armenia amidst the illegal extraction of natural resources in the Karabakh region and arms transfers from Armenia to the region.

During the plenary discussions on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference in February, President Ilham Aliyev proposed installing checkpoints on the Armenia-Azerbaijan border to facilitate the border delimitation process. However, the proposal was rejected by Armenia.