Armenian rights defenders treat situation in Nagorno-Karabakh as humanitarian catastrophe

Shelling, psychological pressure and absence of conditions for normal life have resulted in a humanitarian catastrophe in Nagorno-Karabakh, the human rights defenders interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" have noted.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in recent days the situation on the Azerbaijani-Nagorno-Karabakh border has aggravated. At night on March 10, Azerbaijani militaries fired about 23 mortar shells in the direction of the Khramort village of the Askeran District, the Nagorno-Karabakh Ministry of Defence (MoD) has informed. A villager was wounded in the back in the yard of his house.

For the sixth day already, Nagorno-Karabakh residents have been living without gas supply, since the failed gas pipeline is located in the territory controlled by Azerbaijan; and it is not yet possible to repair it, as Azerbaijani militaries prevent this, Artak Beglaryan, the State Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh, has written in his Telegram channel.

According to his story, about 100,000 people are staying without gas, heating and hot water. Besides, according to his version, shelling of dwelling settlements continues.

According to Nina Karapetyants, a human rights defender and the head of the Helsinki Association of Armenia, regular aggressive actions of Azerbaijani militaries, which tell negatively on the life and health of Nagorno-Karabakh residents, can be treated as "terror."

"After the war and destructions, when many houses are ruined, when people are in unbearable conditions, depriving them of gas supplies is a humanitarian catastrophe," Ms Karapetyants told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

She has also noted that the constant pressure on civilians, including calls through loudspeakers to leave their homes, "is impossible to get used to."

In the opinion of Andrias Gukasyan, a political analyst and the leader of the Constructive Party of Armenia, "until international forces are brought in to ensure the security of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), Armenia will be completely dependent on Azerbaijan and Russia." "All the today's short-term solutions (ceasefire, restoration of the gas pipeline, etc.) depend on Moscow," Mr Gukasyan told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 13, 2022 at 06:20 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.