Azerbaijan forces refugees to settle in occupied territories of Nagorno-Karabakh

YEREVAN, December 10. /ARKA/. Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) authorities accused today Azerbaijan of violating the international law by reportedly forcing refugees to resettle in the territories of Artsakh occupied by Azerbaijan during last year's 44-day war.
Artsakh State Minister Artak Beglaryan told a press conference on Friday in Stepanakert, the capital of Artsakh that there is no civilian Azerbaijani population in the town of Shushi. The only Azerbaijanis there are the military and construction workers.
He said there are media reports and there is information from other sources that the Azerbaijani authorities are using pressure on refugees threatening to stop state social assistance programs in case they refuse to settle in Shushi and other occupied territories of Artsakh.
He drew the attention of the international community to this fact which he said is a gross violation of international law.
On September 27, 2020, Azerbaijani armed forces, backed by Turkey and foreign mercenaries and terrorists, attacked Nagorno-Karabakh along the entire front line using rocket and artillery weapons, heavy armored vehicles, military aircraft and prohibited types of weapons such as cluster bombs and phosphorus weapons.
After 44 days of the war, on November 9, the leaders of Russia, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a statement on the cessation of all hostilities. According to the document, the town of Shushi, the districts of Agdam, Kelbajar and Lachin were handed over to Azerbaijan, with the exception of a 5-kilometer corridor connecting Karabakh with Armenia.
A Russian peacekeeping contingent was deployed along the contact line in Karabakh and along the Lachin corridor. -0-