Bulldozer hits mine in liberated Aghdam

By Vafa Ismayilova

A bulldozer has struck a mine in Aghdam region liberated from Armenian occupation in 2020, Trend has reported.

The incident occurred on the newly-constructed Aghdam-Fuzuli road in Aghdam's Yusifjanli village.

Khalid Mammadov, a Kurdamir region resident born in 1991, was driving a LIQONK bulldozer when he hit a mine buried by Armenian armed groups. As a result, the bulldozer's right chain was damaged, but the driver, Mammadov, was not hurt.

Meanwhile, the Azerbaijani Prosecutor-General's Office stated that the Aghdam region prosecutor's office received information that the abovementioned incident took place during the repair and construction work in Yusifjanli.

An investigation into the case is underway in the region prosecutor's office.

Armenia submitted to Azerbaijan all mine maps of liberated territories as a result of talks held through the Russian Defence Ministry's mediation on December 4, 2021.

On March 2, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov stated that the low accuracy of Armenia's minefield maps of Azerbaijani liberated territories slows the mine-clearance process.

"The demining operations are underway, but people are still losing their lives. From the end of the 44-day Second Karabakh War to the present, over 200 people have become victims of mine explosions in liberated lands," Bayramov said.

He added that the high mine contamination of the liberated territories hinders the return of former internally displaced persons to their native lands.

It should be noted that ANAMA, along with the partner countries, carries out demining activities on its liberated territories. Moreover, the State Border Service and the Defence Ministry units also demine the liberated lands.

Armenia deliberately and constantly planted mines on Azerbaijani territories, in violation of the 1949 Geneva Convention, thereby being a major threat to regional peace, security and cooperation.

Previously, on June 12, Azerbaijan handed over 15 Armenian prisoners in exchange for a map detailing the location of 97,000 mines in formerly-occupied Aghdam.

On July 3, Armenia submitted to Azerbaijan maps of about 92,000 anti-tank and anti-personnel mines planted during the occupation of Fuzuli and Zangilan regions.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a Russia-brokered peace agreement on November 10, 2020, to end 44 days of fighting and work toward a comprehensive resolution.