Three Armenian soldiers killed in a shootout with Azerbaijani saboteur group

YEREVAN, June 4, /ARKA/. Armenian defense ministry said three Armenian soldiers have been killed today in a shootout with armed men who tried to infiltrate Armenia from neighboring Azerbaijan.  In a statement the ministry’s press office described the infiltrators as Azerbaijani saboteurs and said they tried to break into Armenia's north-eastern Tavush region bordering Azerbaijan.

"According to preliminary information, on June 4, the Azerbaijani side once again grossly violated the ceasefire on the contact line, trying to infiltrate the Armenian positions near the villages of Berdavan and Chinari in Tavush region," the statement said. 

It said as a result of retaliation the advance of the saboteur group was halted and the latter had to retreat after suffering heavy losses. It identified the killed Armenian soldiers as Hrach Sargsyan, Zohrab Balabekyan and Karen Davtyan. It said there are also wounded Armenian soldiers. Chief military prosecutor of Armenia and other senior military officers have gone to the scene of the shooting.

"Armenian forces control the situation on the contact line. The ministry of defense expresses its deep condolences to the parents and relatives of the killed soldiers," the statement said. 

The incident was reported as U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was expected to visit Yerevan on June 4 for talks with Armenian leaders. Her meetings were expected to touch on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh. -0-