The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Finnish Foreign Minister Ilkka Kanerva expressed his serious concern over a series of bomb explosions in the South Ossetian conflict zone and called on the sides to resume “unconditional dialogue.”

“I am saddened by these casualties and seriously concerned about the increasing number of violent incidents and the escalation of tension in the zone of conflict,” Kanerva said. “It is of vital importance that both sides resume unconditional dialogue and refrain from any actions or statements which would further destabilize the situation.”

Since February 28, three separate bomb incidents have killed three people and seriously wounded at least five others, including one peacekeeper from the North Ossetian Battalion of the Joint Peacekeeping Forces. The latest incident took place on March 27 in Tskhinvali, where an explosive device attached to a car killed one woman and seriously injured the driver. The OSCE press release said the perpetrators of these attacks remained unidentified.