Three Azerbaijani soldiers were killed in skirmishes near the ethnic Armenian-held territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijani television reported Friday according to AP. Private ANS TV said one soldier was killed when ethnic Armenian forces opened fire on an Azerbaijani position. It said two others were fatally wounded when they stepped on a land-mine allegedly planted by Armenian forces. Calls to Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry for confirmation went unanswered, according to AP. Senor Asratian, a spokesman for the Nagorno-Karabakh military forces, said that Azerbaijani troops were the first to open fire on the Nagorno-Karabakh positions. Asratian said that Nagorno-Karabakh forces returned fire, adding that they suffered no losses. He wouldn't say whether Azerbaijani troops suffered any losses in the skirmishes.
