By Herve Bar, with Dmitry Zaks in Barda
STEPANAKERT (AFP) – Fresh explosions rocked the capital of the disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region on Saturday despite a ceasefire agreed between warring neighbours Armenia and Azerbaijan that brought a brief lull in shelling and missile strikes earlier in the day.
The truce, which entered into force at noon on Saturday, had been agreed between both sides in marathon Russia-brokered talks in Moscow.
Azerbaijan and Armenia immediately accused each other of violations, but the agreement appeared to curb artillery fire during the afternoon, with some Stepanakert residents emerging from their homes after days of heavy bombardment.
The respite was short, however, with seven loud explosions rocking the badly damaged city at around 23:30 pm (1930 GMT) on Saturday evening, triggering fresh air raid sirens, an AFP journalist working in the city reported.
A senior Azerbaijani official said the truce was only meant to be “temporary”.