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Azerbaijan singles out the enemy in the Armenian-ruled breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region for carrying out grenade attacks in residential areas in Gjandzja at dawn Sunday.
The attacks were aimed at civilian targets, according to the Azerbaijani authorities. At least nine people died and 34 were injured, according to Reuters.
Witnesses say residential buildings were nearly razed and damage was extensive in surrounding areas.
Gjandzja is the second largest city in Azerbaijan after the capital Baku.
The Armenian side calls the accusations “complete lies”.
Stepanakert shelled
According to a spokesman for the Armenian regime in Nagorno-Karabakh, the capital of the region, Stepanakert, was bombed by Azerbaijani forces on Sunday night. The AFP reporter posted overnight reported explosions in the city.
“We take note of reports of continued military activity, including against civilian targets and with civilian casualties, with utmost concern,” EU Foreign Minister Josep Borrell said in a statement.
In the evening, the Azerbaijani army declared that an air attack had been carried out against an Armenian regiment and that the losses of the opposing side were considerable. The announcement was the first officially of a military operation since the ceasefire took effect at lunch on Saturday.
Turkish requirement
Turkey again made its voice heard in the conflict on Sunday. In a telephone conversation with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, Foreign Minister Mevlüt Cavusoglu called on Russia to exert influence over Armenia to stop the attacks on Azerbaijan.
Turkey is a close ally of Azerbaijan.
Agreement on a temporary ceasefire in the battles over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region came after Russian-led talks over the weekend between the Azerbaijani and Armenian foreign ministers in Moscow. The conversation was led by Lavrov.
One intention was that the sides could exchange the dead in battle.
The disputed area formally belongs to Azerbaijan, but is in practice autonomous under the wings of Armenia, with a mainly Armenian population.
