Armenians leave Nagorno-Karabakh in droves

The Armenian community in Nagorno-Karabakh is leaving en masse due to fears of "ethnic cleansing" after separatists there surrendered to the Azerbaijani government.

Many Armenians have started driving along the Lachin corridor to leave Nagorno-Karabakh for their country. The Armenian government said that as of the evening of September 24, about 1,050 had crossed into Armenia.

The leader of the separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh says the region's 120,000 Armenians do not want to live as part of Azerbaijan for fear of "repression and ethnic cleansing". Armenians are predominantly Christian while Azerbaijan is a majority Muslim country.

A long line of Armenian vehicles on the road leaving Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh, on September 24. Photo: Reuters

Armenian leaders in Nagorno-Karabakh say people displaced by Azerbaijan's military operations and wishing to leave will be escorted to Armenia by Russian peacekeepers .

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said earlier that aid had been sent to Nagorno-Karabakh, but a mass exodus from the region appeared inevitable.

“If Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh are not given the opportunity to live in their own homes and there are no mechanisms to protect them from ethnic cleansing, they will see leaving as the only option,” Pashinyan said.

On September 20, pro-Armenian separatists signed a ceasefire agreement with the Azerbaijani army, agreeing to lay down their weapons and disband their forces. The separatists also accepted a proposal from the Azerbaijani government for negotiations to reintegrate the region into Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan stressed that it would ensure "safe passage" for separatist fighters who laid down their weapons as well as the rights of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh after reintegration. Azerbaijan denied accusations of "ethnic cleansing", affirming that it wanted the reintegration process of Nagorno-Karabakh to proceed smoothly.

Location of Nagorno-Karabakh region. Graphic: France 24

Ngoc Anh (According to Reuters )

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