Three Troops Killed in Fresh Karabakh Clashes

At least three troops died in overnight clashes between Azerbaijani troops and separatist forces of the Armenian-backed breakaway Nagorny Karabakh region, officials in Baku and Karabakh said Wednesday.

The defense ministry in Baku said "a captain and a warrant officer of the Azerbaijani armed forces were killed" in clashes on the Karabakh frontline, while a private was injured.

The Karabakh defence ministry said in a statement: "Corporal Erik Gasparian, 19, was killed in action in the southern sector of the line of separation between Azerbaijani and Karabakh forces."

There has been an increase in violence in recent months along the Azerbaijan-Armenia border and at the Karabakh frontline, with both sides regularly accusing the other of tit-for-tat raids. At least 11 soldiers from both sides have been killed.

Last year, around 20 soldiers from both sides were reportedly killed in border shootouts.

Armenia-backed separatists seized Nagorny Karabakh from Azerbaijan in a 1990s war that killed 30,000 people. Despite years of negotiations since a 1994 ceasefire, the two sides have yet to sign a peace deal.

Azerbaijan has threatened to take back the disputed region by force if negotiations do not yield results, while Armenia has vowed to retaliate against any military action.