Armenia urges world community to focus on arrests in Nagorno-Karabakh

“I must emphasize that the Azerbaijani authorities are making illegal arrests in Nagorno-Karabakh. I believe that the world community needs to pay attention to this,” he stated.

The prime minister also added that Armenia was feeling the aftermath of the humanitarian crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh after the relocation of local residents, and Yerevan needs help from its international partners.

According to the latest reports, Azerbaijani authorities detained in Nagorno-Karabakh three former presidents of the unrecognized republic – Arkady Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan and Arayik Harutyunyan, as well as parliament speaker Davit Ishkhanyan, former foreign minister David Babayan, former army commander Lt. Gen. Levon Mnatsakanyan, former state minister and businessman Ruben Vardanyan, and former deputy commander of the Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh Davit Manukyan.

On September 19, tensions flared up again in Nagorno-Karabakh. Baku announced it was launching what it described as “local anti-terrorist measures” and demanded the withdrawal of Armenian troops from the region. Yerevan, in turn, announced there were no Armenian forces in Karabakh, calling what was happening “an act of large-scale aggression”. On September 20, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said that an agreement was reached with the participation of the Russian peacekeeping contingent to suspend anti-terrorist measures in Karabakh. On September 21, in the Azerbaijani town of Yevlakh, a meeting was held between the representatives of Azerbaijan and Karabakh’s Armenian residents in order “to discuss the issues of reintegration.”

On September 28, President of the unrecognized Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh Samvel Shahramanyan signed a decree dissolving the republic.