Thousands of refugees cross into ArmeniaAlmost 3,000 ethnic Armenians have crossed into Armenia from Nagorno-Karabakh in the wake of last week’s Azerbaijani military offensive in the disputed region, which left hundreds of people dead, wounded or missing, report the Guardian’s Andrew Roth and Sam Jones.
By 5am local time on Monday, more than 2,900 refugees had arrived in Armenia, according to an Armenian government statement cited by Russia’s Tass state news agency.
Several hundred refugees began crossing over from Nagorno-Karabakh on Sunday, becoming the first civilians to reach Armenia in nearly a year and reuniting families after a 10-month blockade by Azerbaijan that has led to desperate shortages of food, fuel and water in the local capital, Stepanakert, and surrounding areas.
Officials in the breakaway Armenian government in the region have said they plan to evacuate thousands of displaced people from the region into Armenia.
The local government said evacuees would be accompanied across the border from the disputed region into Armenia by Russian peacekeepers.
Read the full story here.
A family of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh who have just arrived in Goris after being evacuated by bus. Photograph: Astrig Agopian/Getty ImagesKey events
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Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will meet with Azerbaijan’s president Ilham Aliyev today.
“The bilateral relations between Türkiye and Azerbaijan will be discussed, and views on current global and regional matters, particularly the latest developments in Karabakh, will be exchanged,” the Turkish leader’s office said in a statement.
Reuters reports that ethnic Armenians in the capital of the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh were seen today loading belongings into buses and trucks as they left for Armenia.
Dozens of people, many with children and luggage, lined up to board buses.
Refugees board a bus as they leave the Red Cross registration center, in Goris, on September 25, 2023. (Photo by ALAIN JOCARD / AFP) (Photo by ALAIN JOCARD/AFP via Getty Images) Photograph: Alain Jocard/AFP/Getty ImagesThousands of refugees cross into ArmeniaAlmost 3,000 ethnic Armenians have crossed into Armenia from Nagorno-Karabakh in the wake of last week’s Azerbaijani military offensive in the disputed region, which left hundreds of people dead, wounded or missing, report the Guardian’s Andrew Roth and Sam Jones.
By 5am local time on Monday, more than 2,900 refugees had arrived in Armenia, according to an Armenian government statement cited by Russia’s Tass state news agency.
Several hundred refugees began crossing over from Nagorno-Karabakh on Sunday, becoming the first civilians to reach Armenia in nearly a year and reuniting families after a 10-month blockade by Azerbaijan that has led to desperate shortages of food, fuel and water in the local capital, Stepanakert, and surrounding areas.
Officials in the breakaway Armenian government in the region have said they plan to evacuate thousands of displaced people from the region into Armenia.
The local government said evacuees would be accompanied across the border from the disputed region into Armenia by Russian peacekeepers.
Read the full story here.
A family of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh who have just arrived in Goris after being evacuated by bus. Photograph: Astrig Agopian/Getty ImagesGood morning and welcome back to the Europe live blog.
Today we will be looking at the latest developments in Nagorno-Karabakh, as refugees continue crossing into Armenia.
Azerbaijan launched a military offensive in the area last week, prompting condemnation and concern from western capitals. A ceasefire agreement was quickly reached and ethnic Armenian forces agreed to disband, leaving much uncertainty over the future of ethnic Armenian civilians in Karabakh.
Armenia’s prime minister, Nikol Pashinyan, said on Sunday: “Our government will lovingly welcome our brothers and sisters from Nagorno-Karabakh. The Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh still face the danger of ethnic cleansing.”
In a meeting with a European Union representative over the weekend, Azerbaijan’s president Ilham Aliyev said the rights of Karabakh’s Armenian population would be ensured.
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