Some 42,500 Armenians have so far fled their homes in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, Armenian officials say.
A third of the Armenians have been displaced, including grandmother Malina, according to the BBC website. The elderly woman tells the British network that local authorities have informed them that they must return to Armenia for security reasons. Grandma Malina’s village in the “Martakert” district of Nagorno-Karabakh is now empty.
Meanwhile, images and videos that have flooded social media show hundreds of cars, loaded with belongings, crossing the one and only road leading from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. Azerbaijan’s leadership claims that those who remain will be safe, but Armenia’s prime minister has warned that “ethnic cleansing” has already begun.
Nagorno-Karabakh – recognised as part of Azerbaijan – has been ruled by Armenians for three decades. The mountainous region in the South Caucasus was supported by Armenia and its ally Russia. At least 200 Armenians and dozens of Azerbaijani soldiers were killed during the invasion by the Azerbaijani army. As part of a ceasefire agreement, the separatists agreed to hand over their weapons.
The Azeris claimed that they wanted to treat Armenians as “equal citizens”, but limited assistance was provided to them with many residents fleeing. On Monday, a huge explosion at a petrol station killed at least 68 people, and injured 300 while 105 are still missing. It is not yet clear what caused the explosion on Monday night near the capital “Stepanakert” by Armenians, but many were refilling their cars.
As they crossed the border yesterday, thousands of Armenians were subjected to strict checks by Azerbaijani authorities. The Baku authorities claimed that they were looking for suspects for war crimes.
Meanwhile, a government source told Agence France-Presse that the country intends to grant “amnesty to Armenian fighters who laid down arms in Karabakh”. “But those who committed war crimes during the Karabakh wars must surrender,” he added.
BBC reporters have seen families piled into cars with their suitcases stacked on top of each other, placed on roof racks. “These people feel they are leaving their homes for good and are therefore trying to take as many things as they can,” the article comments.
Yesterday, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken urged Azerbaijani President Aliyev to provide “unconditional protection and freedom of movement to civilians while calling for humanitarian access to Nagorno-Karabakh”. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also called on both sides to respect human rights.
