Today marks the anniversary of the April battles between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

Axar.az informs that nine years have passed since the start of the historic battles that ended with the victory of the Azerbaijani Army.

Starting in mid-March 2016, Armenians began violating the ceasefire intensively. From the night of April 1 to 2, Azerbaijani Army positions and residential areas along the entire frontline came under heavy fire from the enemy. As a result, from April 2 to 5, Armenians carried out armed provocations along the line of contact. Civilians were also targeted during these attacks. As a result of these events, Azerbaijani Army servicemen were martyred. There were also deaths and injuries among the civilian population.

During the fighting, the Azerbaijani Army also retaliated against Armenian positions, and after a rapid counterattack, more than 2,000 hectares of territory were liberated and more areas came under operational control. The heights around the village of Talish, which could pose a threat to the Goranboy district and the city of Naftalan, were completely cleared of enemy forces. In order to protect the city of Horadiz from the enemy threat, the strategically important height called Lalatapa, located in the direction of the Fuzuli district, allowing control of a large area, was also taken under the control of the Azerbaijani Army. As a result of these battles, 320 Armenian soldiers were killed and more than 500 were wounded.

For their heroism and bravery in defending Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity, countering the armed provocations of Armenian forces along the line of contact from April 2 to 5, 2016, and repelling attacks on civilians, a distinguished group of Azerbaijani servicemen was awarded high honorary titles, orders, and medals by the relevant decrees of the President of Azerbaijan on April 19, 2016. A group of servicemen were awarded the honorary title of "National Hero of Azerbaijan", the orders of "Azerbaijan Flag" and "For Service to the Motherland", and the medals "For the Motherland", "For Courage" and "For Military Services".