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WORLD NEWS Tuesday 13 OcTOber 2020
Armenia, Azerbaijan report attacks despite cease-fire deal

By AVET DEMOURIAN
Associated Press
YEREVAN, Armenia (AP) —
Armenia and Azerbaijan
on Monday accused each
other of attacks over the
separatist territory of Na-
gorno-Karabakh despite a
cease-fire deal brokered
by Russia to try to end the
worst outbreak of hostilities
in the region in decades.
The cease-fire came into
effect Saturday, but was
immediately challenged
by mutual claims of viola-
tions that persisted since
then.
Armenian Defense Minis-
try spokeswoman Shushan
Stepanian said Azerbai-
jani forces were "inten-
sively shelling the southern
front" of the conflict zone
on Monday morning. Na-
gorno-Karabakh officials
said Azerbaijan directed a
"large number of forces" to
the area of Hadrut, a town People look at the destroyed houses a day after shelling by Armenian's artillery during fighting over the separatist region of Nagorno-
Karabakh, in Ganja, Azerbaijan, Monday, Oct. 12, 2020.
in the south of the region, Associated Press
and reported "large-scale
hostilities" there. at noon Saturday following tonio Guterres was "very dis- observe" the agreements cease-fire talks on Friday
Azerbaijan's Defense Min- talks in Moscow sponsored appointed" at the reported reached in Moscow and night were not "in vain,"
istry called those accusa- by Russian Foreign Minister cease-fire violations, which warned against delaying and that it was possible to
tions "disinformation" and Sergey Lavrov. The deal he called "unacceptable," "the political negotiation change "the situation on
insisted that Azerbaijan was stipulated that the cease- according to U.N. spokes- process". The minister said the ground" in the nearest
observing the cease-fire. fire should pave the way man Stephane Dujarric. he believed that the long future. q
The ministry in turn accused for talks on settling the con- "The secretary-general
Armenian forces of shelling flict. condemns any targeting
the Goranboy, Terter and If the truce holds, it would and attacks against civil-
Agdam regions of Azerbai- mark a major diplomatic ian-populated areas any-
jan. coup for Russia, which has where and regrets the loss
Armenian military officials a security pact with Arme- of life and injuries," he said.
also said that Nagorno- nia but has also cultivated "We call on all parties again
Karabakh forces shot down warm ties with Azerbaijan. to fulfill their agreements to
an Azerbaijani Su-25 war- But so far the agreement a humanitarian cease-fire
plane, a claim that Azer- "is not being adhered to and other commitments
baijan denied. in full, and hostilities con- announced in Moscow"
The recent fighting be- tinue," Lavrov said Monday and remain ready to re-
tween Azerbaijani and Ar- at a meeting with his Arme- spond to any humanitarian
menian forces started Sept. nian counterpart. needs if requested, Dujarric
27 and has left hundreds of Both Armenia and Azerbai- said.
people dead in the biggest jan reiterated their commit- Residents of Nagorno-
escalation of the decades- ment to the deal and ac- Karabakh's capital of
old conflict over Nagorno- cused each other of violat- Stepanakert, which came
Karabakh since a separat- ing it. under intense shelling last
ist war there ended in 1994. Turkey, which has publicly week, told The Associated
The region lies in Azerbaijan sided with Azerbaijan in Press on Monday it didn't
but has been under control the conflict, also accused feel like a truce to them.
of ethnic Armenian forces Armenia of violating the "We do not feel the cease-
backed by Armenia. truce. fire at all. We do not get
The foreign ministers of "They have no respect for out from here to our flats,"
Armenia and Azerbaijan international law or for hu- said Larisa Azeryan, who
signed a truce in Moscow manitarian values," Turk- has been staying in a shel-
after Russian President ish Defense Minister Hulusi ter in the basement of an
Vladimir Putin had bro- Akar said. "They have ruth- apartment building. "We
kered it in a series of calls lessly attacked Ganja and all stay here, we eat here,
with Azerbaijani President other civilian settlements sleep here. The whole day
Ilham Aliyev and Armenian and continue to do so. This is spent here in the base-
Prime Minister Nikol Pashin- amounts to the breach of ment."
ian. the cease-fire." Lavrov urged both sides in
The cease-fire took effect U.N. Secretary-General An- the conflict to "rigorously