New escalation in Nagorno-Karabakh: Live updates
Azerbaijan launched “counter-terrorism measures of a local nature” in Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday, accusing Armenia of amassing troops in the disputed region. Yerevan has denied fielding any troops in the area, which is de jure considered to be part of Azerbaijan.
Armenia accused its neighbor of starting “another large-scale aggression against the people of Nagorno-Karabakh” and alleged Baku is seeking to subject the region, predominantly populated by ethnic Armenians, to “ethnic cleansing.”
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20 September 2023
09:22 GMTNagorno-Karabakh has announced a ceasefire with Azerbaijan. According to the authorities of the breakaway region, the agreement with Baku is to take effect at 1pm local time on Wednesday.
- 07:52 GMT
More than 2,000 civilians have been evacuated from Nagorno-Karabakh, more than half of them children, according to the Russian Defense Ministry, which has a sizeable peacekeeping contingent in the region.
- 05:13 GMT
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry stated that its military “successfully continued” the “anti-terrorist activities” in Nagorno-Karabakh. It claimed that Baku’s forces had neutralized combat positions, military vehicles, artillery and anti-aircraft missile launchers, radio-electronic combat stations, and other military equipment belonging to Armenia. Yerevan has denied having any armed formations in the disputed region.
- 04:20 GMT
According to RIA Novosti news agency, the protesters have left the Republic Square in Yerevan by Wednesday morning.
An angry mob clashed with police officers outside the government headquarters overnight, demanding the resignation of PM Pashinyan.
- 02:51 GMT
The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said that “anti-terrorist activities will be stopped” if “the formations of the Armenian armed forces stationed in the Karabakh region” surrender.
The Armenian Defense Ministry earlier denied that its troops were present in Nagorno-Karabakh.
- 00:27 GMT
Azerbaijan’s close ally Türkiye has said that Baku had launched its operation “in response to the long-standing armed attacks and provocations by illegitimate Armenian armed elements” in Karabakh.
At the same time, the Turkish Foreign Ministry stressed that “the comprehensive negotiation process” is the only way to achieve a lasting peace in the region.
19 September 2023
23:54 GMTAccording to Gegham Stepanyan, the top human rights official in Nagorno-Karabakh, seven civilians were killed as of 3 am local time on Wednesday. The victims include three women and two children, he said.
A total of 35 people were injured, including 15 women and 13 children, Stepanyan added.
- 22:18 GMT
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke over the phone with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, also calling for the end of hostilities.
“There is no military solution and that the parties must resume dialogue to resolve outstanding differences between Baku and ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh,” Blinken said, according to the readout by the State Department.
- 22:01 GMT
Moscow has reiterated its call for a ceasefire. “The Russian side strongly urges the sides of the conflict to end the bloodshed, immediately stop the fighting and return to the path of the political and diplomatic resolution [of the conflict],” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters.
- 21:50 GMT
Armenia has lodged a complaint to the Strasbourg-based European Court of Human Rights, accusing Baku of “large-scale aggression” against the civilian population of Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenian media reported, citing officials.
