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NAGORNAO KRABAKH] —Human Rights Watch has called on governments working the facilitate peace in the Nagorno-Karabakh region to ensure the right of ethnic Armenians to return to the region.
The military offensive taken by Azerbaijan in the Nagorno-Karabakh region caused many Armenians to leave in late September.
Nearly 100,000 ethnic Armenians have fled the region they once controlled following hostilities enacted by the Azerbaijani military and in fear that aggressive action could continue from Azerbaijan's forces.
The exodus has left the region practically depopulated, with those remaining being primarily the elderly or people too sick to leave.
Many of the people who fled left with few of their belongings as they were jammed into small cars with limited amount of space, according to interviews conducted by Human Rights Watch on the Armenian border.
Many Armenians have expressed interest in returning to Nagorno-Karabakh but say they would only do so if there was international protection, according to Human Rights Watch.
Because of this, Human Rights Watch has called on Azerbaijan authorities to not only outline how they intend to respect human rights in the region in the short and long term, but also the need to accept international monitoring in the region.
Human Rights Watch urged countries who partner with Azerbaijan to demand peace in the region to ensure the safety of all who are there, including ethnic Armenians.
Current talks are in progress between Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, facilitated by European Council President Charles Michel.
A meeting was scheduled for Thursday with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, also slated to help facilitate discussions. But Aliyev pulled out Wednesday amid visits to Armenia by French diplomats.
Human Rights Watch has urged that the ongoing talks with European facilitators include demands for Azerbaijan to respect international law, permit the return of ethnic Armenians to Nagorno-Karabakh, and allow for monitoring.
Azerbaijan has said that the rights of everyone in the region will be respected.