2020 October 20

Daily news and anti-corruption report

Oct/20/2020 wrap-up: \\ War in Artsakh (Karabakh) \\ calls are made to recognize Artsakh \\ battlefield & analysis \\ videos \\ casualty report; Azerbaijan's huge equipment & personnel losses \\ dozen Turkish Bayraktar drones are downed \\ international response \\ donations \\ medals for soldiers
by ar_david_hh

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Prior events:

October 19, October 18, October 17, October 16, October 15, October 14, October 13, October 12, October 11 , October 10, October 9 , October 8 , October 7, October 6, October 5, October 4, October 3, October 2, October 1, September 30, September 29, September 28, September 27.

thousands of women sign up to join the army

A military unit is being created consisted of female volunteers. After recently publishing a "recruitment" video, the group has been receiving dozens of applications every 10 minutes. 1,000 applications in 2 days. 100 have been selected so far.

"Many have higher education and jobs. Most of them have no military training yet. The training is conducted while the paperwork is finalized, in order not to waste time. They won't necessarily serve in the immediate front line; keeping the rear secure is the goal."

https://youtu.be/ItmeRghx6Qk

https://news.am/arm/news/608820.html

is he GONE gone?

Azerbaijan's army General Chief of Staff Najmeddin Sadikov was arrested when the war began. He was against Turkey's takeover of the Azeri army and was viewed as being too pro-Russian. After arrest, he was allegedly pressured to confess to being a foreign agent.

Sadikov's military profile has been wiped out of the Azeri MoD website completely, as noted by the Azeri users.

https://factor.am/297674.html

https://t.me/infoteka24/9461

October 20 events / battlefield / international response / humanitarian aid

00:00: last night the army shared a video of a destroyed Azeri drone. Russian ANNA military correspondent claims it's the newest Turkish Bayraktar drone.

"Well, this is the first downed Bayraktar in Karabakh. After all, OCA air defense units do have the ability to deal with them. The camera of the downed drone is definitely from Bayraktar. Where is the rest?"

https://t.me/anna_news/8877

00:43: other military experts have verified that the downed drone is TB2 (Bayraktar). The camera system visually resembles that of TB2. One of the cables has a Turkish-language tag that reads "GÜÇ ve Haberleşme Kablosu" (power supply and communication cable)

https://youtu.be/SGk72PcxLJs?t=11

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032146.html

00:01: army spokesman says 5 Azeri drones were shot yesterday.

https://t.me/infocomm/23809

00:14: the Canadian branch of the Armenian church has collected CAD $300,000 in donations for Artsakh.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032143.html

00:38 Aram A, the Catholicos of Artsakh: the hour of Artsakh's international recognition has arrived. The diaspora must raise that flag across the world.

https://news.am/arm/news/608824.html

1:35: the French city of Vienne has officially recognized the Artsakh Republic, according to deputy-mayor Levon Sakounts. Vienne will donate $5,000 to Artsakh.

https://t.me/infocomm/23812 , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032148.html

2:06: Armenians held the second demonstration in Barcelona. They called for Spain to recognize the Artsakh Republic and condemn and aggression against it.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032147.html

4:25: Les dirigeants azerbaïdjanais et arméniens se disent prêts à résoudre le problème par la voie politique

https://www.civilnet.am/news/2020/10/20/Les-dirigeants-azerbaïdjanais-et-arméniens-se-disent-prêts-à-résoudre-le-problème-par-la-voie-politique/402966

8:00 Artsakh official: there are very heavy battles in the southern village of Ishkhanadzor. [It's above the water reservoir on the Iranian border that Azeris reached two days ago. The whole southern area is a flatland that makes the advancing army's job easier.]

In the north, the enemy couldn't advance even a centimeter. They sustained significant human and equipment losses.

We are living in a decisive period, and we must overcome this challenge together. Today we first of all need everyone's participation and sense of responsibility.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032150.html

8:22: European Parliament MP Charlie Weimers (Sweden) is unhappy with the jihadist situation. "Emanuel Macron has already announced that they have evidence that Turkey has hired Syrian Islamists to aid Azerbaijan.

I've asked the European Parliament whether it plans to expel Turkey from the OSCE Minsk Group. That would be the right move."

https://news.am/arm/news/608834.html

9:40 army: the night was relatively stable but tense. Artillery battles continue in some locations, especially the south. The defense army is in charge of the situation and inflicts losses on the opponent.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032156.html

10:38 army: we have artillery-men who have done things that weren't even in the training programs. One of them is division commander, Lieutenant Colonel Arsen Hakobyan who shot a T-90 tank on October 7th.

Among other medal recipients are Vachagan Nersisyan, for using TROPA to stop the enemy attack, and a dozen other soldiers for other acts.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032158.html

10:43 president Sarkissian to France24 outlet: when will the international community apply pressure on Turkey?... For 20 years, OCSE mediated a negotiation process and a lot was achieved. The only thing that was left was some political will and mutual concession, but Azerbaijan decided to start a war.

https://youtu.be/UAalTHU9l_o

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032159.html

10:45 army: Azeris are using aviation and artillery in the north, while the heavy battles continue in the south. The army is taking appropriate measures to stop the attack.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032161.html

10:55: Armenians held a demonstration in Argentina under heavy rain.

Video: https://www.facebook.com/100014400365306/videos/940323846457619/

11:21: photos of soldiers from Artsakh Defense Army

Female: https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/199093

Male: https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/199092

11:28: demonstrations were held in front of the EU embassy in Yerevan, joined by a visitor from the Netherlands. They want the EU to recognize Artsakh and condemn Azerbaijan directly for the aggression. Several protesters met the ambassador and presented evidence of war crimes committed by the Azeri army.

https://youtu.be/JosPy8Ih14c

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032164.html

11:29: Արցախ է բերվել Հայոց Բանակի Աշոտ Երկաթի Խաչը, որի մեջ զետեղված են Քրիստոսի Խաչափայտի սուրբ մասունքները [s***t just got real]

https://news.am/arm/news/608861.html

11:35 MFA Mnatsakanyan to BBC News: there need to be ceasefire monitoring mechanisms on the ground and Azerbaijan should be forced to follow them. It will expose the guilty side.

https://factor.am/297528.html

12:05: schools in Gegarquniq province are helping the Artsakh refugees with donations from their budget. Teachers and students organized humanitarian fundraisers.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032169.html

12:35: photo of Turkey's Erdogan wearing a suit featuring the Ottoman Sultan who conquered Europe:

https://t.me/sashakots/17495

12:50: looks like Iran is not pleased by Azeri soldiers beheading people. Iranian MFA spoke about the "concerning" beheading images and said [without giving names], "Iran doesn't support terrorist-style beheadings and strikes against civilians."

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032174.html

13:01: video showing the combat training for volunteers.

https://youtu.be/V5sYMY9rVys?t=5

13:25 political analyst Karen Hovhannisyan: the 4th Army Corps, brought from the Baku region, has been suffering heavy losses in the past 7 days. It's been dismantled. You can assume the scale of losses they must have sustained.

In the first days, when 150 Azeris would infiltrate and attack, they would have modern uniforms and equipment and you could tell they had some level of training. Today we have a different picture.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/199105

13:31 human rights Ombudsman: international organizations' refusal to visit Artsakh is one of the reasons why Azerbaijan is able to commit war crimes and atrocities. Artsakh should not be ignored in the United Nations. No political issue should be above Artsakh residents' human rights.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032178.html

13:48: Yesterday Pashinyan said Russia has the legal right to carry out anti-terror operations in Artsakh against Syrian jihadists, which also pose threat to Russia.

Russia responded saying, they will fight the terrorists only after Armenia officially petitions Russia about it, and after assessing the risks that will arise after said counter-terrorism operations.

https://factor.am/297624.html

13:59: PM Pashinyan met the former Artsakh presidents Bako Sahakyan and Arkadiy Ghukasyan.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032180.html

14:09: Syrian SOHR organization has identified 27 jihadists, hired by Azerbaijan, who were killed in the past 2 days.

https://t.me/infoteka24/9460

14:14 army spokesman: a retreat is not a defeat. There was a retreat in 1918, 1941, and 1992 too, but in the end, we won. We will win again.

https://factor.am/297636.html

14:20: Armenians held a march in Spain.

https://youtu.be/9t9r7icC8rk?t=19

14:32: writer Narine Abgaryan will donate the revenue from her new book sales to www.HimnaDram.org

https://factor.am/297656.html

14:45: army published names of 43 soldiers identified as deceased, bringing total to 773.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032189.html

14:52: actor George Clooney is praying for peace. He expressed solidarity with the Armenian people.

The Aurora Prize award was held in New York, with remote attendance, despite a cyber-attack.

https://youtu.be/brv2kLb8bCM

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032191.html

https://factor.am/297778.html

14:53: European Parliament MP Eva Kaili has asked the EU to suspend the Schengen visa for Azeri diplomats, and implement more restrictions for Azeri citizens, as a consequence of their aggression against the citizens of Artsakh.

She also called for the EU to assist Armenia and to "begin serious talks towards canceling the visa regime for Armenian citizens."

https://factor.am/297638.html

15:11: "La Casa De Papel" is a popular Spanish criminal-drama show featuring Hovik Keuchkerian, who plays a character named Bogota. Hovik released a video asking the world community to stand with Artsakh against the aggression.

Paren la agresión azerí.

https://youtu.be/eKBVu3TG17A

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032197.html

15:03: the army released details about the Turkish Bayraktar drone that was shot yesterday. The remotely controlled camera is of L-3 WESCAM CMX-15D model. It was built by Canadian WESCAM in June and installed on Bayraktar in September, within 31 hours. (Canada would later suspend the component sale to Turkey)

Pashinyan says the army has shot about a dozen Bayraktar drones already but this is the first time the remnants fell in the Armenian-controlled territory.

"This is proof of Turkey's direct involvement in the terrorist attack against Artsakh. Any country that supplies components for Bayraktar production should follow Canada's example and suspend the sales."

Photo and video:

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032193.html , https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032194.html

15:09 army: Azeris have so far lost 6309 soldiers, 4 TOS, 576 tanks and armored vehicles, 23 aircrafts, 16 helicopters, 200 drones, etc.

Their losses in the past day were 50 soldiers, 5 drones, 10 armored vehicles, 1 aircraft.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032195.html

15:37 Armenian MoD: after sustaining heavy losses, Azeris are retreating in the south, near the Khudaferin water reservoir on the Iran border. We did warn them earlier that they were entering Hell.

15:47 army spokesman: I told you earlier that our retreat in many areas is the best solution, and that when we launch a counter-attack, many of you will feel ashamed of certain sentiments.

What I said would happen tomorrow has become a reality today. Think about what you will say to the attacking Armenian soldiers and their commanders.

Welcome to hell, Aliyev. Pass it around to your terrorists.

16:53 Russian ANNA correspondent: our sources confirmed a counter-attack by Armenians in the south. It's too early to tell the results, but at the moment there are serious advancements. Azeris still claim to have control of southern Zangelan village.

17:27 Russian reporter Kotenok: Armenians used the Donbass (Ukraine) strategy in the south. They trapped the Azeri soldiers, forcing them to retreat near the water reservoir.

https://t.me/voenkorKotenok/22958

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032201.html

https://factor.am/297716.html

https://factor.am/297713.html

https://factor.am/297710.html

https://t.me/anna_news/8884

15:54: Armenia has two more National Heros: the First Deputy Chief of the General Staff Lt. General Tigran Khachatryan, and the Commander of the 5th Army Corps Maj. General Andranik Piloyan.

Pashinyan: especially in the last hours, on the battlefield, they crowned their names with glory and deserve the title of a national hero. They continue their heroic fight for the homeland. Glory to the Armenian army.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032204.html

15:59 Pashinyan: as confirmed by the European Court for Human Rights, Azerbaijan is governed by a racist regime that glorifies ethnic violence against Armenians and implants ethnic hatred into society. Forcing Armenians of Artsakh to live under Azerbaijani rule violates international law. #RecognizeArtsakh

https://twitter.com/NikolPashinyan/status/1318522220239572993

15:15: Japanese photographer Hayato Matsumoto expressed solidarity with Armenia, saying he carefully follows the news. "I have many friends in Armenia. Some have joined the army. Others have sighed up for the draft."

https://golosarmenii.am/article/97655/dazhe-nochyu-prosypayus-i-prosmatrivayu-voennye-svodki%E2%80%A6

15:59: the European air traffic regulators EASA and EUROCONTROL have found the Armenian skies safe and manageable enough for flights. The Armenian Civil Aviation took steps to secure the flights despite the ongoing war, found the regulators.

The agencies released 3 NOTAM warning messages for airlines:

(1) Airlines should separately assess the risk before flying in the AM-AZ border.

(2) Contact the regulators in the event the jet notices an unknown flying object (drone)

(3) Some segments of the AM-AZ border is closed for flights.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032206.html

16:14: Catholicos Garegin B gave an interview to La Republica outlet and called the ongoing aggression by Turkey and Azerbaijan a new genocide. He urged the international community to take steps against the imported terrorists, too.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032208.html

16:18: an interview from the front lines. Commander Koryun Soghomonyan's unit infiltrated the enemy rear, neutralized them, and captured the position.

https://youtu.be/E2AkhHXnnpw

16:26: what is president Sarkissian best known for? That's right, he likes to invite kids to the presidential palace. This time the guests were Artsakh refugee kids.

Actors from Hakob Paronyan theater were also invited to perform "Bremenian Musicians" and other performances.

https://youtu.be/2TIrNRusfCY

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032210.html

16:34: Iran has shot down another Azeri drone that intruded into its territory near Gara Goch village in Minjavan. Photos indicate it's an Israeli-made Harop.

https://en.irna.ir/amp/84081824

https://twitter.com/razminfo/status/1318585560039104516?s=20

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032212.html

16:35: sappers discovered a banned cluster bomb with 260 unexploded and exploded grenades not far from capital Stepanakert, fired by Azerbaijan sometime in the past. It fell in a civilian agricultural and beekeeping area.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032213.html

16:40: singer Tata has donated $10,000 to Artsakh for food and clothes.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/199129

16:55: a cracker-eating soldier released a video from the front line

https://twitter.com/mkdotam/status/1318536410924802051?s=20

Graphic video showing the aftermath of an ambush by the Armenian army, resulting in numerous Azeri casualties:

https://t.me/infoteka24/9480

More Azeri soldiers have been identified by non-official sources as deceased. Azerbaijan keeps the list secret:

Non-graphic: https://twitter.com/301_AD/status/1318570502852612106?s=20

17:36: the largest Saudi restaurant chain Savola Group is replacing Turkish hamburgers with Greek ones.

https://t.me/infoteka24/9492

17:49: Armenians held a demonstration in Czechia.

https://youtu.be/f-queR8a2xk

17:50: women sewing military disguise-nets while singing:

https://youtu.be/LWJ5ixPbh24

https://youtu.be/QJ_NBVIt3Y0

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/199065

19:12: the MoD refuted the Azeri claims of targeting the Azeri settlements Gerandiboy and Terter.

https://factor.am/297882.html

19:19: French-language audio-briefing of the war.

https://anchor.fm/civilnet/episodes/Guerre-du-Haut-Karabakh-lArme-de-dfense-de-lArtsakh-a-abattu-cinq-drones-elat03/a-a3jk9u3

19:30 Strategic Culture: "Why Conflict in the Caucasus Is Erdogan’s Revenge [against Russia] for Syria"

https://www.strategic-culture.org/news/2020/10/17/why-conflict-in-caucasus-erdogan-revenge-for-syria/

19:48: a Photoshoped photo was circulated by Azeri social media claiming to show the funeral of numerous Armenian soldiers. It's from 2015 Russia.

https://twitter.com/517design/status/1318579818515091456?s=20

19:51: the army released photos of another Turkish Bayraktar TB2 drone downed by the Armenian air defense.

https://factor.am/297902.html

19:55: Macron and Putin discussed Karabakh.

https://factor.am/297897.html

19:57: Armenian demonstrators in Greece closed the road leading to the Israeli embassy. They want the suspension of suicide drone sales that have been used against Artsakh civilians.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032232.html

21:06: Colonel Stepan Grigoryan is the man who, on October 18th, organized a defense in the south and forced the Azeris to retreat a few kilometers. He has been promoted to Maj. General.

https://www.armtimes.com/hy/article/199150

21:12 army spokesman interview: the fierce battles continue in the south. If we move from one line to another for better defense, that doesn't mean we're "losing". The positional changes are dynamic in large wars. If we advance forward, that doesn't mean the Azeri army has been broken.

We made some progress today. I can't say numbers or the scale of success but I was in touch with one of the commanders while he was leading a counter-attack in real-time.

On one occasion, 800 Azeris stormed our position in the north but had to retreat without capturing a single position after leaving 200-300 dead.

https://t.me/reartsakh/5224 , https://t.me/reartsakh/5227 , https://t.me/infocomm/23883

22:00 army spokesman briefing: in the morning Azeris attacked in north and south. Southern battles were fierce, during which, our soldiers successfully repelled multiple attacks and threw them back.

From yesterday evening throughout today, our air defense was able to shoot multiple Azeri drones, including Turkish-made Bayraktars, made in September 2020.

The battles are fought according to a plan. Our commanders know what they're doing. I'd like to remind you that sometimes, groups of Azeri infiltrators enter our settlements, some of which do or do not have residents, take videos from there, then spread the videos primarily for their own public's consumption. Unfortunately, sometimes the Armenian public is also impacted by their propaganda.

There are settlements that were announced as being under Azeri control even 10-15 days ago, yet in reality, they are not. All entrances and exits fall under our artillery strike (or other methods) which destroys anything that resembles Azeri units. But they claim to have these areas under their control. Don't spread Azeri propaganda. Don't sit behind computer screens and "give advice"; join the army instead.

The situation is stable and controllable.

[Indroduces volunteer Harutyun Baghdasaryan who fought in the south. The latter talks about battles and how courageous the young soldiers are.]

Q: is the report about 173 Armenian soldiers being saved from entrapment true?

A: No. There have never been such large incidents. There are some instances when special units move forward and find themselves encircled before being rescued.

https://youtu.be/xSe7svYnoTw

22:27: UEFA won't allow Armenian and Azeri soccer teams to play against each other due to the ongoing conflict.

https://t.me/reartsakh/5231

22:47: a woman plays guitar in a bomb shelter

https://t.me/reartsakh/5232

23:25: U.S. Congresswoman Grace Napolitano has called for the U.S. government to officially recognize the independence of the Artsakh Republic.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032247.html COVID stats

+2893 tested. +1234 infected. +10 deaths. +526 healed. 16541 active.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032163.html Yerevan will have a new hospital

The owner of the 10 Hrachya Nersisyan St. area will invest $15m and build a new hospital. 450 job positions. The Yerevan municipality passed a resolution to approve it and legally repurpose the land to authorize construction.

https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1032173.html How to donate to Artsakh residents

International: www.HimnaDram.org

USA tax-deductible: www.ArmeniaFund.org

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You've read 2823 words.

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Link to original report and comments: https://www.reddit.com/r/armenia/comments/jewwbx/oct202020_wrapup_war_in_artsakh_karabakh_calls/

Disclaimer: All the accused are innocent until proven guilty by the court of law, even if they may sound as being guilty. Currency in Armenian Drams ֏ unless specified otherwise. Helpful overview of Armenia's media ownership and leanings.