Azerbaijan-Armenia conflict heats up

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Destroyed buildings in a residential area in Ganja, Azerbaijan, on Sunday Associated Press/DHA

Residents in the Nagorno-Karabakh region spent the weekend crammed into basements and underground shelters. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry on Monday accused Armenia of shelling the residential towns of Tartar, Barda, and Beylagan. Armenia dismissed the report as a disinformation campaign and accused Azerbaijan of firing missiles into Stepanakert, the capital of the disputed territory. The two countries have reported at least 249 deaths since clashes erupted on Sept. 27. Nagorno-Karabakh is in the majority Muslim Azerbaijan but has served primarily as home to Armenian Christians since 1994.

Is there an end in sight? Azerbaijan insisted Armenia must withdraw from the region to end the violence. Armenia called for Turkey to leave, accusing it of sending arms and foreign fighters to Azerbaijan. Neighboring Iran on Monday said it was working on a peace plan with both parties.

Dig deeper: Read Mindy Belz’s report in Globe Trot on the long-running conflict.

Onize Ohikere

Onize is WORLD’s Africa reporter and deputy global desk chief. She is a World Journalism Institute graduate and earned a journalism degree from Minnesota State University–Moorhead. Onize resides in Abuja, Nigeria.

@onize_ohiks