Reports of new Armenia-Azerbaijan clashes dent ceasefire hopes

Armenian and Azerbaijani forces were engaged in new clashes overnight and Monday morning even as a Russian-brokered ceasefire over the Nagorno-Karabakh region was violated.

According to AFP, thumping echoes of shelling were heard in the Azerbaijani town of Barda not far from the front line Monday morning.

Sounds of shelling from the direction of the town of Hadrut were heard in Karabakh's main city of Stepanakert.

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The worst fighting in almost three decades erupted last month over Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway region of Azerbaijan controlled by Armenians since a 1990s war but which is not recognised by any state.

After 11 hours of talks between the Armenian and Azerbaijani foreign ministers in Moscow, the arch enemies agreed early Saturday to a humanitarian ceasefire. But the truce has not held.

Both sides have exhanged accusations of intensive shelling of civilian areas and escalating two weeks of fierce clashes.

The Azerbaijani defence ministry accused Armenian forces of not complying with a ceasefire agreement negotiated in marathon talks. The ministry said it had destroyed a "large number of enemy forces" as well as one T-72 tank and three Grad multiple rocket launchers. Armenia claimed that "the adversary suffered great losses of manpower and military equipment" but did not provide further details.

The 1990s war -- which ended with a 1994 ceasefire that did not present a long-term solution to the conflict -- resulted in the deaths of some 30,000 people.

Nearly 500 people including more than 60 civilians, have been killed in the latest fihting since last month, according to a tally based on tolls given by both sides.