Burak Bir
03 October 2020•Update: 04 October 2020
ANKARA
The Azerbaijani army liberated seven more villages from Armenian occupation after a week of clashes, Azerbaijan's president announced on Saturday.
"Today #Azerbaijan's Army has liberated Talish village of Terter district, Mehdili, Chaxirli, Ashagi Maralyan, Sheybey and Guyjag of Jabrayil district, and Ashagi Abdurrahmanli of Fizuli district. #Karabakh is #Azerbaijan!" Ilham Aliyev said on Twitter.
Earlier, Aliyev announced that Azerbaijani soldiers hoisted the flag over the town of Madagiz and added that he had reinstated the town's historical name, Sugovushan, as of Saturday.
"Today #Azerbaijan's Army hoisted our flag over Madagiz. #Madagiz is ours. #Karabakh is #Azerbaijan!" Ilham Aliyev said on Twitter.
Border clashes broke out last Sunday when Armenian forces targeted Azerbaijani civilian settlements and military positions, leading to casualties. Azerbaijan's parliament declared a state of war in some of its cities and regions following Armenia's border violations and attacks in occupied Upper Karabakh, also known as Nagorno-Karabakh.
On Monday, Azerbaijan declared partial military mobilization amid the clashes.
Upper Karabakh conflict
Relations between the two former Soviet nations have been tense since 1991, when the Armenian military occupied Upper Karabakh, an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.
Four UN Security Council and two UN General Assembly resolutions, as well as many international organizations, demand the withdrawal of the occupying forces.
The OSCE Minsk Group -- co-chaired by France, Russia and the US -- was formed in 1992 to find a peaceful solution to the conflict, but to no avail. A cease-fire, however, was agreed upon in 1994.
France, Russia and NATO, among others, have urged an immediate halt to clashes in the occupied region.
