Two villages in Artsakh come under 30-minute heavy machine gun fire from Azerbaijani forces

YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 12, ARMENPRESS. The villages of Karmir Shuka and Taghavard in Artsakh’s Martuni region were shelled for 30 minutes by Azerbaijani military forces deployed nearby.

The shooting took place from 04:00 until 04:30 on September 12.

The Azerbaijani forces, deployed in front of the towns, used various types and various caliber small arms and heavy machine guns in the shooting, the Human Rights Defender of Artsakh Gegham Stepanyan said in a statement. He also released images showing the damage from the shooting.

Two civilian homes were hit in Karmir Shuka. In one of the homes, all 4 members of the household, including one child, were asleep when the shooting began. A bullet struck the window and penetrated into the bedroom.

A home in Taghavard was also damaged. Authorities found a 12.7×108mm bullet in the yard of the home fired from a DShK heavy machine gun.

The Human Rights Defender’s Office continues collecting information on damages.

“These actions are yet another evidence of Azerbaijan’s criminal conduct against the lives, physical and psychological inviolability of the people of Artsakh and Azerbaijan’s policy of ethnic cleansing against the people of Artsakh which is aimed at terrorizing those living in Artsakh and disrupting their normal lives and activities,” the Ombudsman said.