1st Syrian Mercenary Loyal to Turkey Falls in Azerbaijan, Armenia Clashes

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) revealed Wednesday that its staff had documented the shooting of a Syrian mercenary pro-Turkey in the battles between Armenia and Azerbaijan.

However, Ankara has declared its support for the latter openly in the conflict as clashed broke out last Sunday.

SOHR issued a statement pointed out that information was received by the Syrian Observatory indicating that Syrian mercenaries loyal to Turkey were involved in the battles of Azerbaijan. Supposed mission of those militants was limited only to protect the oil fields in Azerbaijan.

SOHR affirmed that the number of Syrian mercenaries, Syrian nationality, fighting in Azerbaijan until the moment reached 320 armed men, and they were transferred by Turkish security companies.

The sources of the Syrian Observatory added that the militants who arrived in Azerbaijan, the overwhelming majority of them from the "Turkmen" group in Syria. They went to Azerbaijan under the pretext of the "national cause.

Majority of population in Azerbaijan belongs to the Turkish peoples spread in the region extends from China to the shores of the Aegean Sea.

Armenia accused Turkey of sending thousands of Syrian mercenaries to Azerbaijan to support it in the conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region.

The reports of the Syrian observatory came to reveal the details of the transfer of mercenaries and weapons from Turkey to Azerbaijan.

The observatory said that the majority of mercenaries are from the militia of the Sultan Murad Division and the Sultan Suleiman Shah Brigade, from the towns and villages of Afrin in northwestern Syria, and they were told that the destination would be Azerbaijan.

The Turkish authorities informed the mercenaries that the goal of sending them there is to protect border sites for a sum of $1,500 to $2,000.

Azerbaijan became the new destination for the Syrian mercenaries who were recruited by Turkey's President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and employed them in his battles in Syria and Libya.

The Syrian Observatory said that Ankara sent about 18,000 Syrian mercenaries to Libya to fight alongside the militia of the Fayez al-Sarraj government.