Two weeks ago, 50,000 people lived in Stepanakert. Now there are only a few hundred left. – Medical personnel have left, those who work for the waterworks have left, even the director of the mortuary has left. It’s surreal, the head of the Red Cross’ team in the city, Marco Succi, told Reuters on Thursday. This is the situation after Azerbaijan took control of the Armenian-inhabited area within a couple of weeks. Facts about Nagorno-Karabakh A region in Azerbaijan near the border with Armenia. The majority of the population are ethnic Armenians. Internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but since 1994 Armenian separatists have controlled parts of the area. Despite Armenian dominance, Nagorno-Karabakh was part of Azerbaijan during the Soviet era. In 1988, the local parliament tried to have the area placed under Armenia, which led to war in 1991, when the Soviet Union fell apart. Around 30,000 people were killed and over a million displaced. In 1994, the parties signed a ceasefire, but without agreeing on a peace treaty. In 2020, war broke out again between Azerbaijan and Armenian separatists supported by Armenia. The war lasted for a month and a half and ended with victory for Azerbaijan, which recaptured parts of Nagorno-Karabakh. On 19 September, Azerbaijan launched a massive attack on separatist positions and quickly took full control of the rest of Nagorno-Karabakh. In recent weeks, over 100,000 Armenians have fled Azerbaijan. The majority of the population in both Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh are Christians and belong to the Armenian Orthodox Church. In Azerbaijan, the majority of the population is Muslim. Fact: AFP/NTB – It usually takes two hours to drive from Stepanakert to the border with Armenia. For those who fled, it took one and a half to two days before they were finally in safety. That’s what Katar Taslakyan says, who now works as a volunteer to help the refugees. Received over 100,000 Katar Taslakyan works daily as a guide in Armenia, but is now busy taking care of the refugees who have flocked to the country. Photo: Kristian Elster / news Over 100,000 of the 120,000 who lived in Nagorno-Karabakh have fled to Armenia since the fighting broke out on 22 September. There are a lot of refugees for a country like Armenia, which itself only has 3 million inhabitants. Nevertheless, the refugees are well received. Armenians stand up and help those who come, says Katar. – Some have been taken in by friends and families, even if it means that twelve people have to live in a two-room apartment. Others have moved into empty homes, while still others have been placed in hotels around the country, she says. Refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh at the end of September. The whole territory is now almost emptied of people. Photo: AP – Feeling of togetherness Most have settled in the capital, Yerevan, where many have opened their homes. Katar says that for the past few days she has been working until midnight or 3 am helping. – I know a woman who fled from fighting in 2020. Now her family has arrived. There are the parents and two brothers with their families. Now they live in an empty house owned by a friend. I have helped them get mattresses, blankets and other things, she says. Katar says that people she doesn’t know have given her things that she can pass on to the refugees. – What has happened has given a feeling of unity and we have managed to avoid people ending up on the street, she says. While the inhabitants have fled Stepanakert, cows left behind still graze near the town. Photo: AP Have been starving for months The Azerbaijani attack in September came after Nagorno-Karabakh has been isolated since December last year. Then Azerbaijani forces blocked the Lachin Corridor, a road that ran from Armenia itself to Nagorno-Karabakh. It was the only way to get supplies into Nagorno-Karabakh. At first, the Red Cross was allowed to come forward, but since June everything has been blocked, writes The Guardian. The result is that the inhabitants of the enclave have lived close to the starvation level for a long time. Katar says that after nine months of hunger, the children who have fled are finally getting to taste sweets. – I heard a child ask his mother if she could eat the whole cookie, or if she should save half for tomorrow, says Katar. The green area is Nagorno-Karabakh. Fears new attacks Azerbaijan has, with the help of oil money, greatly strengthened the military in recent years. This allowed them to take control of Nagorno-Karabakh within a few days. Now Qatar and other Armenians fear that Azerbaijan is planning new attacks. The Guardian writes that Azerbaijan’s president and parliament have recently been using the term “West Azerbaijan”. It concerns the Armenian region of Siunik, a part of Armenia that lies between Azerbaijan itself and the Azerbaijani province of Nakchivan. – There is a clear fear that Azerbaijan could launch new attacks at any time. That fear is shared by all Armenians, says Katar. She says that many refugees refrain from settling in the border areas precisely because of this fear. Instead, it is the capital Yerevan that has received the most refugees. Many have already managed to get to work, helped by the residents of the capital. – In the midst of the horror, there is community and solidarity. Seeing the unity in a difficult time helps with the pain we experience, says Katar Taslakyan from the capital Yerevan.
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Armenians fear new attacks from Azerbaijan – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
