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In a statement published on Sunday, the Armenian Foreign Ministry described Azerbaijan's actions as "terrorism" following a shootout in the Nagorno-Karabakh region which claimed the lives of three Armenian police officers. 

Earlier today, a shootout broke out between the security forces of both countries. 

Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said the shootout occurred when soldiers went to inspect vehicles that were suspected of transporting arms along an auxiliary dirt road, adding that several people were killed from both sides, but did not specify the exact number of losses.

"On March 5, a unit of the Azerbaijani army was deployed to an area around the Khankedi-Khalfali-Turshsu country road to check reports that the Armenian army is transporting weapons, munitions, and manpower. During an attempt to check a vehicle, the other side opened fire. The Azerbaijani army sustained losses, with several soldiers killed and wounded. The attackers were repelled by retaliatory fire," Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry said.

"Such acts of aggression and provocations demonstrate that Armenia has not dropped its occupational policy toward Azerbaijan, that Yerevan’s ideas about the peaceful agenda is nothing but hypocrisy. Armenian is not interested in establishing peace and security in the region," it added.

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Armenia, on the other hand, said that the shootout was a staged provocation and that Baku fabricated false information on Yerevan's alleged transfer of weapons to the conflict zone. 

"The official version of events put forward by Azerbaijan is absurd: they have not presented and cannot present any fact and justification supporting that version … The actions of the Azerbaijani forces cannot be described as anything other than terrorism," the statement issued by the Armenian Foreign Ministry reads, while also calling on organizations that are interested in the establishment of real peace "to strongly condemn the use of force and the threat of force by Azerbaijan, as well as another manifestation of provoking large-scale hostilities."

It also called for "active steps to prevent further violations of Azerbaijan's own international obligations."  

Photo evidence on the consequences of the attack of an Azerbaijani sabotage group in an area near Stepanakert and Shushi. pic.twitter.com/d2c3nfbIHg

— Artsakh / Nagorno-Karabakh Human Rights Ombudsman (@ArtsakhOmbuds) March 5, 2023

Video evidence with a description of episodes of the Azerbaijani attack.
Video 1. pic.twitter.com/FxoL6a9hMo

— Artsakh / Nagorno-Karabakh Human Rights Ombudsman (@ArtsakhOmbuds) March 5, 2023

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