The mass exodus of Armenian residents from Nagorno-Karabakh continues unabated: as the Russian news agency Interfax reported this evening, according to the Armenian government, 99,000 people from the Caucasus region recently arrived in Armenia. According to the latest information from the Yerevan government, more than 80 percent of Nagorno-Karabakh’s 120,000 Armenian residents have already left the region.
Families told AFP reporters how they burned their belongings to prevent them from falling into Azerbaijani hands. Angelina Agabekyan showed a video of her husband setting fire to his military uniform and documents before the family joined the stream of people leaving Nagorno-Karabakh through the Lachin corridor – the only road link to Armenia.
UN launches mission to Nagorno-Karabakh
Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, announced a UN mission in Nagorno-Karabakh. The ten-person team, led by officials from the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), will begin over the weekend “trying to assess the situation on the ground and identify humanitarian needs, both for those who remain and for those that remain.” those who flee.” Dujarric added that the UN has not had access to Nagorno-Karabakh for “around three decades”, so the mission is “very important”.
Given the “catastrophic humanitarian situation” in the region, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) asked for support of around 20 million euros. Hospitals are at the limit of their resources and accommodation is “urgently” needed due to the onset of cold weather, explained IFRC Regional Director for Europe, Birgitte Bischoff Ebbesen.
Nagorno-Karabakh “will cease to exist”
On September 19, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive in the region. Just one day later, the pro-Armenian fighters had to admit defeat. The dissolution of the self-proclaimed Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh on January 1, 2024 was announced on Thursday. Nagorno-Karabakh, which was predominantly inhabited by Armenians, would “cease to exist,” a decree said.
Azerbaijani security forces announced the arrest of a pro-Armenian commander. Davit Manukyan is expected to be remanded in custody for four months, it said in a statement. The deputy commander of pro-Armenian fighters in Nagorno-Karabakh is suspected of being involved in “terrorist” activities and other crimes in the Armenian enclave. He is also accused of “leading illegal armed groups”.
Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg (ÖVP) criticized Azerbaijan’s military offensive and demanded “security guarantees” from Baku for the Armenians of Karabakh. In view of other conflicts in the region, the minister sees “the potential for a massive conflagration in the South Caucasus”.