Shelling by Both Sides of Karabakh Conflict Reported Near Martakert City

Artillery fire was exchanged by armed forces of Azerbaijan and the self-proclaimed Nagorno Karabakh Republic (NKR) earlier on Sunday, a Sputnik corresponded reported.

MARTAKERT (Sputnik) — Shelling is taking place in the area around Karabakh's town of Martakert, some 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles) from the Karabakh-Azerbaijan contact line.

Howitzer shells is being fired from the Azerbaijani side, NKR military sources said. At least five shells exploded at around 14:00 p.m. local time (10:00 GMT).

On Saturday, 25 shells were fired at the city, according to local administration head Vladik Khachatryan. No civilian casualties occurred as the town's population is currently in bomb shelters, Khachatryan added.

The conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh began in 1988, when the Armenian-dominated autonomous region sought to secede from the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic, before proclaiming independence after the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991. In September 2015, the conflict escalated, with the sides blaming each other for violating the truce.