Freedom House and partners have found that Azerbaijani authorities have conducted a deliberate campaign to empty Artsakh of its ethnic Armenian population.
The Azerbaijani regime carried out ethnic cleansing against the ethnic Armenian population of Artsakh, reads the report prepared by the international fact-finding mission, consisting of Freedom House and six other partners.
This report examines the situation for ethnic Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh for the period starting with the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War in 2020 and through the Azerbaijani military offensive against Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023 and its aftermath. The fact-finding mission has documented multiple cases of gross human rights violations, breaches of international humanitarian law and international criminal law, as well as serious breaches of peremptory norms of international law by Azerbaijani officials during the events spanning from 2020 to May 2024.
The report also confirms the conclusion that the actions documented in Artsakh are military crimes against humanity. The release of the report comes as COP29, the U.N.’s annual forum on climate change, is being held in Baku.
“The military attack by Baku and the use of blockade, famine, and threats was a brutal tactic aimed at forcibly displacing ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh,” Andranik Shirinyan, the representative of Freedom House in Armenia, said, adding that “the reckless actions of the Azerbaijani regime in Nagorno-Karabakh have created a dangerous precedent for non-democratic regimes to use force to end conflicts. The international community must intensify its efforts to combat human rights violations against ethnic Armenians displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh and ensure that the perpetrators are held accountable.”
“Ethnic Armenian residents have been subjected to numerous violations of their rights and freedoms. Violations have been documented regarding the right to life, health, food, freedom of movement, an adequate standard of living, liberty and personal inviolability, education, and property rights. Cultural rights have also been violated. The perpetrators deliberately killed peaceful residents, even in the presence of peacekeepers, and enjoyed absolute impunity. This has heightened the sense of insecurity and terror among the population leading up to the mass displacements that occurred in September 2023.”
Violations continue in Artsakh in the form of erasing the Armenian cultural and historical presence. This includes the planned or completed destruction of Armenian cultural monuments, churches, cemeteries and residential areas.
The report outlines a number of steps that democratic governments can take to combat impunity. In particular, the authors of the report urge Baku to be held accountable for its actions, support international efforts to prosecute war crimes against humanity and the population of Nagorno-Karabakh, implement targeted sanctions such as travel bans and asset freezes against Azerbaijani officials, military leaders and gross human rights violations and against persons involved in war crimes.
The authors call to protect the rights of displaced ethnic Armenians and urge the Azerbaijani state to create conditions for the safe and voluntary return of displaced Armenians to Nagorno-Karabakh. In addition, there is a need to promote initiatives that protect the rights of forcibly displaced persons and advocate for the implementation of strong legal protection and support services.
The fact-finding mission urges Azerbaijan to uphold international standards of cultural preservation and prevent further destruction or alteration of Armenian cultural values. The mission’s full report included interviews with 330 witnesses who represented 71 of Nagorno-Karabakh’s 107 communities initial findings with additional documented evidence and analysis of the September 2023 military offensive, following It also expands the legal framework and provides a comprehensive set of recommendations on the displacement of ethnic Armenians and its consequences, including details of all the routes used by residents to evacuate.
