BAKU, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Azerbaijan Sunday accused Armenia of violating a ceasefire by attacking its second largest city of Ganja and resulting in heavy civilian casualties.
Shells from the Armenian side fell on residential buildings in Ganja city in northwestern Azerbaijan, which killed five civilians and wounded 17 others, reported Azerbaijan's state-run news agency AZERTAC, citing the country's emergency authority as saying.
Azerbaijan's defense ministry also confirmed the attack on its official website.
However, the Armenian Defense Ministry's spokesperson Shushan Stepanyan denied the report, telling local media that it was false information.
Armenia and Azerbaijan agreed on a ceasefire in the Nagorno-Karabakh region starting Saturday noon, following lengthy negotiations in Moscow on Friday night.
Armenia and Azerbaijan have been at loggerheads over the mountainous region of Nagorno-Karabakh since 1988. Peace talks have been held since 1994 when a ceasefire was reached, but there still have been sporadic minor clashes.
A new round of armed conflict broke out on Sept. 27 along the contact line of the Nagorno-Karabakh region. The clashes have reportedly caused heavy casualties and property losses. Enditem
