Battle of Aghdam

Significance

The capture of Aghdam on 23 July 1993 removed what Armenian forces had identified as a principal Azerbaijani staging area for attacks and artillery strikes against Nagorno-Karabakh. Located approximately 30 km northeast of Stepanakert and just 5 km east of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast boundary, the city had held a pre-war population of around 50,000. Its fall, along with a significant portion of the surrounding Aghdam District, extended Armenian-controlled territory beyond the oblast's borders and eliminated a forward base from which Azerbaijani forces had been able to threaten Stepanakert directly. The battle was part of a broader Armenian offensive phase in 1993 that substantially enlarged the buffer zone around Nagorno-Karabakh and deepened Azerbaijani territorial losses during the war.

Forces & casualties

Commanders (4)