Four Azeri civilians died Saturday, November 28, after their car hit a landmine planted by retreating Armenian soldiers in the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region, Azerbaijan’s prosecutor general said.

The incident occurred in a village in Fizuli district, a statement said.

“The mine was planted by the Armenian armed forces during their retreat,” the statement said, adding that it was an anti-tank mine. 

The statement called the incident a “new type of provocation” from Armenia. 

Running along the border with Iran, Fizuli was among the districts claimed by Armenian fighters in a 1990s war that saw separatists declare independence over the Nagorno-Karabakh region and several surrounding territories. 

Azerbaijan recaptured Fizuli in renewed clashes over Karbakh that started in late September and continued for 6 weeks, claiming more than 4,000 lives. 

The ex-Soviet rivals signed a Moscow-brokered peace deal on November 9, ending weeks of heavy fighting and documenting that Armenia will surrender to Baku several territories that were under separatists’ control for more than 3 decades. – Rappler.com