12/11/2014 21:05
David Babayan: Azerbaijani troops shot unarmed MI-24 helicopter from rear
The downing of MI-24 helicopter of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic’s Air Force by Azerbaijan did not cause panic in Karabakh, the NKR president’s spokesman David Babayan told Armenpress news agency.
In his words, the people of Karabakh did not lose their strength and power and are prepared to continue the struggle for their dignity and the country’s independence.
‘The people of Artsakh mourn the deaths of three servicemen, but the tragic incident did not affect our power and Artsakh’s people are prepared to fight the enemy for the country’s independence, for their dignity,” Babayan said, noting that military drills continued in the NKR after the helicopter was shot down.
“The helicopter was not meant for military operations. It did not have military equipment and was conducting a training flight. The helicopter did not pose any threat to the enemy. The Azerbaijani side shot at the helicopter from the rear, which shows the true face of Azerbaijan and the degree of insanity in that country. They can only strike from the rear and at an unarmed helicopter,” Babayan said.
Speaking about the crew members’ bodies, David Babayan said that discussions are underway: “We will do everything possible to return their bodies,” he stressed.
The press service of Defense Ministry of the NKR reported earlier today that as a result of a ceasefire violation by Azerbaijani troops, a MI-24 helicopter of the NKR Air Force was shot down during a training flight around 1:45 pm local time in the airspace over the eastern part of the Karabakh-Azerbaijani border. The crash site is in close vicinity of the Line of Contact. After the crash the Azerbaijani side continued firing at the crash site.
Armenian Defense Ministry spokesman Artsrun Hovhannisyan wrote on his Facebook page that the Azerbaijani armed forces made an unprecedented provocation on the border with Nagorno Karabakh and the provocation has escalated the situation. He considered as senseless the Azerbaijani side’s claims that Armenian helicopters allegedly attacked their positions and they had to respond to that action. “Examination of the helicopter’s wreckage will show that there was no military equipment on board. The Azerbaijani side continued escalation even after the helicopter crashed. Moreover, the Azerbaijani side continued gunfire, not allowing anyone to approach the pilots. The consequences of this unprecedented escalation will be painful for the Azerbaijani side and the responsibility will lie with Azerbaijan’s military-political leadership. Major Sergey Sahakyan was the helicopter’s commander. Information about the fate of the crew will be released later,” A. Hovhannisyan wrote.