Nagorno-Karabakh war: Azerbaijan, Armenia accuse each other of violating ceasefire, heavy shelling begins

Several residents of Nagorno-Karabakh were forced into shelters by shelling but the residents were unwilling to give up their homes amid talks that Armenia and Azarbaijan have reached a ceasefire agreement.

Spokesperson of the president of the unrecognized Republic of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh Republic), Vahram Poghosyan, however, said Azernbaijan forces have started shelling the city of Shushi and the town of Martuni breaking the ceasefire agreement.

“Right now, Martuni, Shushi and various large village communities of Artsakh are being shelled,” Poghosyan said late on Saturday, as quoted by the Armenian Unified Infocenter.

Earlier on Saturday, it was reported by Sputnik that two explosions were heard in the center of Stepanakert, the capital of the self-proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. Later, the authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh said that two missiles hit the city.

Both Armenia and Azerbaijan have accused each other of violating the terms of a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh on Saturday. It is to be noted that the truce was brokered by Russia on Friday but it seems that the ceasefire was short-lived.

The ceasefire was aimed to meant to halt fighting to allow ethnic Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh and Azeri forces to swap prisoners and war dead. The Moscow talks were the first diplomatic contact between the two countries since the eruption of war on September 27, killing hundreds of people and leaving many homeless.

The mountain enclave belongs to Azerbaijan under international law but broke away in a war as the Soviet Union collapsed and is populated and governed by ethnic Armenians. Nagorno-Karabakh said on Friday 376 of its military personnel and 22 civilians had been killed.

The fighting is the worst since a 1991-94 war that killed about 30,000 people and ended with a ceasefire that has been violated repeatedly.