Stepanakert accuses Azerbaijan of escalation on frontline
STEPANAKERT/BAKU. Oct 19 (Interfax) - Azeri troops breached ceasefire in the Karabakh conflict zone 35 times in the early hours of Wednesday, the defense ministry of the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) told Interfax on Wednesday.
The enemy aimed 6,100 shots at Karabakh positions, including 1,160 shots fired from a DShK large-caliber machinegun, the ministry said.
"To suppress enemy activity, forward units of the NKR defense army resorted to counteraction and continue to provide reliable protection of their fighting positions," the ministry said.
The number of overnight shots is 25 times the figure recorded from the previous night, a source said. On average, there were about 500 Azeri shots per night throughout October. In September, the situation on the contact line was much more stable.
"Judging by latest developments on the contact line the adversary chose the tactic of deliberate escalation on the frontline. This manifests both in the quantitative increase in instances of ceasefire violation and in the qualitative characteristics of the weapons used. Tellingly, the Azeri side proceeded to provocations not only on the contact line between the conflicting parties, but also on the propagandist field," the spokesperson said.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry said the enemy violated ceasefire 13 times on the contact line in the past 24 hours.