Support The Moscow Times!

Nagorno-Karabakh Declares 'Period of Silence' to Identify Dead

An ethnic Armenian soldier takes a rest at an artillery position near the Nagorno-Karabakh's town of Martuni, April 7, 2016.

A “period of silence” has been declared in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict zone to allow warring parties to identify their dead, the RBC news agency reported Friday.

Defense Ministry spokesman Vagif Dargyakhly said the search will take place between 2 and 7 p.m. on Friday and will be carried out by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), RIA Novosti reported.

The declaration follows agreements on a cease-fire brokered by the Armenian and Azerbaijani sides on Tuesday.

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry had previously reported that at least 31 Azeri fighters had been killed during the course of the ongoing conflict.

On Friday, The Armenian Defense Ministry claimed that 44 Armenian soldiers had perished since the beginning of the flare-up, RBC reported.

Representative in Russia of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) Arsen Melik-Shakhnazarov told journalists that 50 people had died from the Armenian side.

Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysis and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more