Bombardment of Tartar

2020 bombardment of Tartar
Part of the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War
One of the destroyed apartments in Shikharkh
LocationTartar District, Azerbaijan
Date28 September – 10 November 2020 (2020-11-10) (1 month, 1 week and 6 days) (GMT+4)
Attack type
Bombardment
Weapons
Deaths17
Injured63
Perpetrators

The bombardment of Tartar (Azerbaijani: Tərtərin bombalanması) was the bombardment of the cities, towns, and villages in Tartar District of Azerbaijan by the Armenian Armed Forces and the Artsakh Defence Army with artillery, missiles, and cluster munitions during the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War. The bombardment of the district started on the second day of the war, on 28 September, when the Armenian forces shelled the city of Tartar, the administrative center of the district, and Shikharkh, which was built for the Azerbaijani refugees of the First Nagorno-Karabakh War.

Parts of the city of Tartar and around had a sizable military presence from Azerbaijan. Throughout the war, the city was frequently shelled by Armenian forces.[1] The bombardment caused widespread destruction and many civilian deaths.[2][3] Thousands of people became refugees, making the city of Tartar a ghost town,[4] and fled to neighboring cities, such as Barda,[5] which was also targeted by the Armenian forces with cluster missiles.[6][7] The Azerbaijani authorities stated that the Armenian forces had fired 15,500 shells on the territory of Tartar District until 29 October, with over 2,000 shells being fired upon Tartar in some days. Official Azerbaijani figures list over a thousand civilian objects, including schools, hospitals, and government buildings that were either damaged or destroyed during the bombardment.[3]

Human Rights Watch confirmed many of the targeted attacks on civilians and civilian objects, such as kindergartens and hospitals, by the Armenian forces. It also stated that the Armenian military forces had carried out indiscriminate rocket and missile strikes on the Azerbaijani territories, and that such indiscriminate attacks were war crimes.[1] Ilham Aliyev accused Armenia of "trying to turn Tartar to the next Aghdam." Turkey also condemned the Armenian shelling of a cemetery in Tartar during a funeral ceremony,[8] which foreign journalists at scene and Human Rights Watch confirmed.[9][1]

The bombardment of the city of Tartar, as well as Azerbaijani towns and villages in the district of same name stopped on 10 November, when Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement with Azerbaijan with Russia's mediation, ending all hostilities in the region.[10]

  1. ^ a b c "Armenia: Unlawful Rocket, Missile Strikes on Azerbaijan". Human Rights Watch. 11 December 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference euronewsdamage was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference mammadov was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference orlaguerin was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference iwpr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Armenia/Azerbaijan: First confirmed use of cluster munitions by Armenia 'cruel and reckless'". Amnesty International. 29 October 2020. Retrieved 29 October 2020.
  7. ^ "Armenia: Cluster Munitions Kill Civilians in Azerbaijan". Human Rights Watch. 30 October 2020. Retrieved 30 October 2020.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference turkmfatartar was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference tvrain was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ "Armenia surrenders to Azerbaijan". Eurasianet. 9 November 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2020.