Azerbaijan destroys Osa air-defense systems in Nagorno-Karabakh

Azerbaijan just released footage of their strikes on Armenian targets in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh on 27 September.

Video shows Soviet-made Osa air-defense systems (NATO reporting name SA-8 Gecko) belonging to the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army that were destroyed by Azerbaijani troops.

In a release morning Sunday, Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said the 12 OSA anti-aircraft missile systems of the Armenian air defense units were destroyed during large-scale airstrikes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

“The command staff of the Azerbaijan Army decided to launch a counter-offensive operation of our troops along the entire front to suppress the combat activity of the armed forces of Armenia and ensure the safety of the civilian population,” the Ministry said in a statement.

President Ilham Aliyev in his address to the nation said Armenian armed forces fired on Azerbaijani settlements and military positions from several directions, using various types of weaponry, including heavy artillery.

“As a result of the enemy fire, there are casualties among the civilian population and our servicemen. Some people have been wounded. May Allah rest our martyrs in peace,” he said, without mentioning any specific numbers on casualties.

Aliyev vowed to avenge the blood of martyrs, saying the Azerbaijani army continues retaliation on Armenian military positions, and that many units of its military equipment have been destroyed.

The Armenian Foreign Ministry confirmed the active phase of hostilities and specified that this morning, September 27, the Azerbaijani side launched missile strikes along the entire contact line, including the capital of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, Stepanakert.