Russian peacekeeping forces stationed in Artsakh used bullhorns and loudspeakers to warn Azerbaijani forces, who continued to shell villages in Artsakh’s Askeran region over the weekend.

In response to Azerbaijani threats to Artsakh residents, Russian peacekeepers on Monday demanded, through messages broadcast over loudspeakers, that Azerbaijan fulfill the requirements of the trilateral agreement signed on November 9, 2020.

In a message in Armenian, Russian and Azerbaijani languages, they called on the Azerbaijani side to refrain from ceasefire violations.

“Any use of force is unacceptable,” they said, stressing that all issues should be solved in a peaceful way under the auspices of the Russian peacekeepers.

For the first time Russian peacekeepers in Action!

In response to #Azerbaijani threats to the residents of #Artsakh, #Russian peacekeepers demanded through loudspeakers to fulfill the requirements of the trilateral agreement. pic.twitter.com/tXkvq6bv3h

— Jora (@TheScarmind) March 14, 2022

For weeks, using similar means, Azerbaijani forces have been calling in residents of Askeran villages to leave their homes or face aggression. These messages also have been accompanied by incessant shelling of villages in Askeran.

On Saturday, Askeran’s Parukh village became a target as Azerbaijani forces fired 60mm mortars, one of which exploded in the front yard of a community center, causing extensive property damage, according to Artsakh’s Prosecutor General’s office. Artsakh security services are investigating the incident.

“As it has already been reported, in recent days in different parts of the Artsakh-Azerbaijani line of contact, the Azerbaijani armed forces fired from different caliber firearms at the communities of Khramort, Parukh and Khnapat in the Askeran region of Artsakh. The law enforcement bodies of the Artsakh Republic continue the process of documenting the criminal acts against the Armenians of Artsakh. During the fact finding works, another case was registered in Parukh community of Askeran region, a shell fired from a 60 mm mortar exploded in the yard of a building belonging to the community, causing property damage,” the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.

The weekend attack followed a week of uninterrupted shelling of civilian targets in Artsakh by Azerbaijani forces.