Fierce fighting between Azerbaijan and Armenian separatists from Nagorno Karabakh continued Tuesday morning, Baku shifting to a new offensive, hours before an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.
Since Sunday, the forces of the separatist enclave, supported politically, militarily and economically by Armenia, and those of Azerbaijan clash in the deadliest fighting since 2016.
Read also: Nagorno Karabakh: what's going on between Armenia and Azerbaijan?
"
The Armenian forces responded to an Azerbaijani offensive in several sectors of the front line and the enemy suffered significant casualties
", the Armenian Ministry of Defense said on Tuesday.
Azerbaijan "
has carried out massive artillery fire targeting Armenian positions and is preparing for a new attack,
" ministry spokesman Artstroun Hovhannissian wrote on Facebook.
For its part, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry claimed to have responded to an "
Armenian attempt to counterattack to regain the lost positions
" in Nagorno Karabakh and referred to the "
fierce fighting
" that took place overnight.
Tuesday morning, "
the Azerbaijani forces continued an offensive against the city of Fizouli, destroying four enemy tanks, an armored vehicle and killing ten soldiers,
" the ministry said in a statement.
The official toll of these deadly fights stood at 95 dead on Tuesday, including eleven civilians: nine in Azerbaijan and two on the Armenian side.
The real toll could be much heavier, with both camps each claiming to have killed hundreds of enemy soldiers.
Disputed territory
Azerbaijan, a Turkish-speaking country with a Shiite majority, demands the return under its control of Nagorno Karabakh, a mountainous province populated mainly by Armenians, Christians, whose secession in 1991 was not recognized by the international community.
After weeks of war rhetoric, Azerbaijan said it had launched a major "
counter-offensive
" in response to
Armenian
"
aggression
", using its artillery, armor and aerial bombardment on the province which has eluded it since the fall. of the USSR and a war that left 30,000 dead.
These fights have caused international concern, with the UN, Russia, France and the United States calling in particular for an immediate ceasefire.
The UN Security Council must meet urgently Tuesday at 9 p.m. GMT, behind closed doors, to discuss the situation, according to diplomats interviewed by AFP.
Open war between Yerevan and Baku would risk destabilizing the South Caucasus, especially if regional powers Turkey and Russia intervene.