Fresh fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces broke out on Wednesday, killing three Armenian troops, Yerevan said, as the two sides again blamed each other for shooting first across their shared border.

Iran PressAsia: According to the Armenian Defense Ministry, "Azerbaijani forces opened fire from mortars and large-caliber firearms at the eastern direction of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border."

Armenia's Defense Ministry said that three died on the Armenian side.

In a tweet, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said three of his troops had been killed in "an attack against Armenian independence, sovereignty and democracy."

Armenia's PM calls for the deployment of an international observer

"Withdrawal of Azerbaijani troops and deployment of an international observer mission on the Armenian territories affected by Azerbaijani occupation and bordering areas is an absolute necessity," he wrote.

The Armenian side resorted to retaliatory actions after the shooting started, Defense Ministry spokesman Aram Torosyan said.

The Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan blamed the Armenian side, saying it violated the ceasefire. According to Baku, one Azerbaijani soldier was wounded.

"All responsibility for the incident lies with the military and political leadership of Armenia," the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said.

After a flare-up that killed more than 200 soldiers, the two sides on September 23 agreed to the Russia-brokered ceasefire to end the most recent hostilities.

Baku and Yerevan have been locked in a conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh for years. Armenian-backed separatists seized the mainly Armenian-populated region from Azerbaijan during a war in the early 1990s that killed some 30,000 people.

The fighting threatens a fragile ceasefire agreement that ended the worst fighting between the two ex-Soviet Caucasus countries since a 2020 war over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh.

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