BAKU, October 7. /TASS/. There are no terrorists from the Nusra Front and Sultan Murad groups on Azerbaijani territory, Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense’s international military cooperation directorate chairman Hussein Mahmudov told TASS Wednesday.
"I know it crystal clear that such members of various terror groups are not and cannot be on the Azerbaijani territory," he said. "On the other hand, it is already a well-known fact that mercenaries are being involved from Lebanon and Syria to fight for the occupation forces. Armenia almost does not try to hide it anymore."
Earlier, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service head Sergei Naryshkin stated that, according to the information at hand, mercenaries from the international terror groups fighting in the Middle East actively converge to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict area, and expressed concerns that the southern Caucasus may become a new foothold for terrorists.
Renewed clashes between Azerbaijan and Armenia erupted on September 27, with intense battles raging in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The area experienced flare-ups of violence in the summer of 2014, in April 2016 and this past July. Azerbaijan and Armenia have imposed martial law and launched mobilization efforts. Both parties to the conflict have reported casualties, among them civilians.