Border villages request Red Cross interference over Azeri shelling

Border villages request Red Cross interference over Azeri shelling

PanARMENIAN.Net - Azerbaijan continues shelling border villages in Tavush province, rendering farming of the lands impossible.

According to the head of the village of Movses Ararat Avalyan, on Sunday, July 20 agricultural machines came under Azeri fire.

Villagers in Chinari are facing similar situation, with the community heads in Tavush province requesting the International Committee of the Red Cross to interfere, Panorama.am reported.

Azeri ceasefire violations continue, with the rival persistently shelling Armenian positions and border villages in the province of Tavush on an almost daily basis, RFE/RL Armenian Service reported in early July.

According to the village head Roland Markaryan, shots were heard in Paravakar on the morning of July 4 while people were working in their gardens; luckily, no one was injured. “This has been going on for 10 days,” Markaryan said.

According to the head of the village community Samvel Sagoyan, the shelling prevents villagers from farming their lands.

“The fire starts as soon as farming machines appear on the fields, with central road and suburban areas permanently shelled. People have learnt that the very first shot is the most dangerous one,” Sagoyan said.

The Azeri shelling is becoming habitual in the village of Aygepar. The village school and kindergarten are in the enemy’s close fire range, at a distance of several hundred meters from the border.

Recently, Ayo Fund for Armenian Relief initiated construction of a protective wall, with a fundraiser campaign launched a month ago.

Azerbaijan opened fire at the villages of Barekamavan, Aygepar and Movses in Armenia’s Tavush province on June 27.

The administrator of Barekamavan village, Gagik Abazyan, told the newspaper that shots were fired at the village between 5:00 pm and 6:30 pm. The shots targeted homes, kindergartens and the village school.

The village of Aygepar also came under Azerbaijani fire. Shots were fired from large-caliber weapons. The village gas pipeline was damaged. Shootings continued in Movses village from 10:15 pm.

When asked to comment on the reports that Azerbaijan violated ceasefire not only in line of contact with Karabakh, but also across the state border with Armenia, severely shelling civilian rural settlements in northeastern part of Armenia, the U.S. Department of State spokesperson noted, “I don’t have any confirmation of those specific reports, but clearly, a peaceful settlement is in the interests of both countries.”

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