According to UNHCR, more than 100 thousand people arrived in Armenia after the announced abandonment of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, in Azerbaijan.
After the announced abandonment of the Nagorno-Karabakh region, in Azerbaijan, more than 100 thousand refugees from the region arrived in Armenia, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). “Many are hungry and exhausted and need immediate support,” said Refugee Commissioner Filippo Grandi. “International assistance is very urgently needed,” he said. Armenia expects all of its approximately 120,000 ethnic Armenians to leave Nagorno-Karabakh.
The region declared itself independent in 1991, following a referendum that was not internationally recognized and boycotted by the Azerbaijani minority. Azerbaijan and Armenia have been fighting over the region since the collapse of the Soviet Union and have therefore fought two wars, the most recent in 2020. At that point, after six weeks of fighting with more than 6,500 deaths, Russia, which had long been an ally of Armenia, negotiated a ceasefire agreement that forced Armenia to cede large areas. Russian forces stationed in Nagorno-Karabakh did not oppose Azerbaijan’s latest offensive.
Last week, Azerbaijan launched an offensive and, shortly after, the rulers of the internationally unrecognized republic, which is now scheduled to be dissolved on January 1, 2024, capitulated. Azerbaijan has said it will respect the rights of ethnic Armenians who wish to remain in Nagorno-Karabakh. The concept of an independent Armenian region is gone forever. Many Armenians have said they do not want to stay in Nagorno-Karabakh for fear of oppression and violence. (APA/DPA)