Thousands of displaced people arrive in Stepanakert. The Azerbaijani army surrounded villages. Negotiations end without results for now.
Baku/Yerevan/Stepanakert/Vienna. People seek protection in schools, churches and cellars: several thousand displaced people from various regions of the mountainous province have now arrived in the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh, Stepanakert. They can only receive the essentials, as there is a lack of food in the besieged area. The electricity grid does not work and people charge their cell phones on generators. Many are looking for their missing family members after Tuesday’s offensive in Azerbaijan. According to eyewitness accounts, many people are desperate because they do not know what awaits them. There is great fear of the advance of the Azerbaijani army.
Militarily, the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh is ambiguous the day after the ceasefire was declared. Baku is expected to keep several cities surrounded and advance further. Some Karabakh army units apparently refuse to lay down their arms. Armenia-Azerbaijan negotiations on disarmament and humanitarian issues ended on Thursday; concrete results were not known for now. A Karabakh official told Portal that “many issues and topics still need to be discussed.” There is still no agreement. Stepanakert demands security guarantees for the civilian population.
Aliyev apologizes to Putin
Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev has apologized for the deadly bombing of a car belonging to Russian peacekeepers. Several Russians were killed in the incident. Their families should be adequately compensated, Aliyev told the Kremlin. Putin urged Aliyev to guarantee the safety of Armenian civilians when he takes power in Nagorno-Karabakh. (that)