The mechanism of sending mercenaries from Syria, supported by Turkey, to Nagorno-Karabakh has been disclosed. A source in Syrian Idlib on the border with Turkey told Novaya Gazeta about him.
According to the interlocutor, a Syrian of Turkmen origin (Turkoman) named Seif Abu Bakr is engaged in the registration of fighters. He is allegedly a recruiter for the Khamzat brigade, which fights as part of the Free Syrian Army (FSA).
Volunteers are registered in the village of Afrin, Idlib. At the same time, both military and civilians are accepted. They are collected in groups of 300 and sent to the Turkish border town of Killis, where they are issued “inconspicuous civilian clothes.” From Turkey, the mercenaries go to Gaziantep airport, from where they fly to Baku with a transfer in Istanbul. It is noted that the flight passes through the airspace of Georgia.
The source also added that from 700 to one thousand militants were sent to Azerbaijan to protect gas and oil pipelines.
Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan supported the offensive of the Azerbaijani army in Nagorno-Karabakh.
On October 1, CNN reported that Syrian mercenaries, backed by Turkey, are preparing to be transferred to Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the newspaper, volunteers from the pro-Turkish “Syrian National Army” are gathering near the border of Turkey and Syria, awaiting transportation to the conflict zone.
The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) escalated sharply on September 27. Azerbaijan reported that Armenian forces fired at its positions and settlements on the contact line and announced a counteroffensive. Armenia, in turn, blamed the Azerbaijani military for the attack on Artsakh. The Armenian side claims that 4,000 militants are fighting on the side of Azerbaijan, which Turkey has transferred from Syria.
In 1991, Nagorno-Karabakh, the majority of whose population were Armenians, declared independence from Azerbaijan. Baku tried to return the region by force, a war broke out. In 1994, Azerbaijan, Armenia and the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, with the mediation of Russia, signed a truce protocol. However, hostilities periodically resume.
