University Network for Human Rights is conducting constant monitoring of the situation unfolding in Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) since Azerbaijan’s military offensive of the self-governed enclave on September 19, 2023. We are publishing updates on this page as soon as we have been able to verify the information. Due to the extremely difficult and chaotic situation on the ground, some information is impossible to fully verify quickly, in which case we may still publish it, indicating clearly the level of verification that has been achieved. All updates include links to sources.
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September 18, 2023: The first aid shipment in three months passes through the Lachin Corridor. Nagorno-Karabakh has been under siege for nine months.
Source: ICRC
1:22 pm, September 19, 2023: The Azerbaijan Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced a military offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh.
[Local] anti-terrorist activities have been launched to ensure the provisions of the Trilateral Statement, suppress large-scale provocations in the Karabakh economic region, to disarm and secure the withdrawal of formations of Armenia’s armed forces from our territories, neutralize their military infrastructure, provide the safety of the civilian population returned to the territories liberated from occupation, the civilians involved in construction and restoration work and our military personnel, and ultimately restore the constitutional order of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
As part of the measures, positions on the front line and in-depth, long-term firing points of the formations of Armenia’s armed forces, as well as combat assets and military facilities are incapacitated using high-precision weapons.
Source: Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense
Early afternoon, September 19, 2023: Numerous social media accounts from Nagorno-Karabakh reported a video message circulating on social media directed at the population of Nagorno-Karabakh apparently on behalf of the Azerbaijani government. The announcement, spoken aloud in Armenian and with Russian subtitles, against a montage of videos of Nagorno-Karabakh de facto authorities and shots of Armenian residents walking around busy streets of Stepanakert, says:
To the Armenian population of Karabakh: The Armenian government and its puppets in Garabagh became rich and insolent. They have a lot of wealth in foreign countries. They are not worried about their future. This is why they are hiding and sacrificing you for their personal ambitions. The Armenian people already know their internal enemies well.
We shouldn't be enemies because of these political players. The Azerbaijani military is not your enemy. It will never cause you harm. We have come to save you from the criminals. Do not resist; the Azerbaijani government guarantees your safety.
Source: A post of the video message that at the time of writing has received 13,000 views.
Afternoon and night of September 19-20: Dozens of reports from on the ground show widespread damage to civilian infrastructure and vehicles, as well as civilian casualties.
Source: Numerous images and messages posted on social media by Stepanakert residents [see 1, 2, 3] and a video posted on Telegram presumably by Azerbaijani armed forces
Evening of September 19, 2023: Russian vehicles carrying women and children were fired upon by Azerbaijani forces while en route to the Lachin Corridor checkpoint for evacuation. The vehicles and all the passengers returned to the Russian peacekeeping contingent’s headquarters.
Source: Azatutyun.am phone interview with Armenian nurse based in Mets Shen village.
11:20 pm, September 19, 2023: Russian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh “evacuated” Armenians from what they and Azerbaijan have called “the dangerous areas” of Nagorno-Karabakh to Stepanakert. The Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh reported that 7000 people from 16 communities have been transferred.
Source: Twitter post from the head of the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh
September 19- ongoing, 2023: On social media people desperately asked if anyone has news of what is happening in different towns of Nagorno-Karabakh, presumably where people have family or friends. The majority of the pleas for information went unanswered.
Source: Various Facebook pages of private users
11:51 pm, September 19, 2023: The head of the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh announced, “It is not possible to establish contact with a number of peaceful communities, gathering facts about the population in those communities is impossible.”
Source: Twitter post from head of the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh
September 19, 2023: Azerbaijani armed forces took control of the 4th century Amaras Monastery. The Center for Truth and Justice warns, “If no immediate action is taken, then the Amaras Monastery will undoubtedly suffer the same fate as numerous other Armenian churches in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.”
Source: Center for Truth and Justice
5:00 am, September 20, 2023: The Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh reported that Azerbaijani forces fired upon an ambulance transporting bodies of deceased from Martakert to Stepanakert: “Around 5:00, the ambulance of the Stepanakert's morgue, which was sent to the Martakert region in order to transport 8 bodies to to the capital, was fired at by the Azerbaijani armed forces. The driver of the ambulance got injured and is currently not able to evacuate the bodies to Stepanakert.”
Source: Twitter post from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh
8:18 am, September 20, 2023: Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Forces tweeted that they are resisting.
Source: Twitter post of Karabakh Ministry of Defense
11:08 am, September 20, 2023: The Stepanakert Municipality directed an official message to the population to refrain from “self-evacuating” to the airport (headquarters of the Russian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh).
Source: Stepanakert Municipality publishing on Artsakh Info Center's Telegram channel.
Early afternoon, September 20, 2023: Azerbaijan’s forces surrounded the capital city of Nagorno-Karabakh and threatened to enter the city and take over government buildings unless ethnic Armenian forces surrendered.
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
1:00 pm, September 20, 2023:
The de facto government of Nagorno-Karabakh released a statement announcing the cessation of hostilities. The terms of the agreement with Azerbaijan delineated in the statement are, in summary:
Complete cease-fire as of 1 p.m. on September 20, 2023.
Withdrawal of the remaining units and soldiers of the “Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia” from the deployment zone of the Russian peacekeeping contingent
The dismantling and disarmament of the armed formations of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Army
“Issues raised by the Azerbaijani side on the reintegration, ensuring the rights and security of Nagorno Karabakh Armenians, as well as the issues of ensuring the vitality of the Nagorno karabakh population within the Constitution of Azerbaijan” will be discussed at a meeting between representatives of the local Armenian population and representatives of the central authorities of Azerbaijani Republic, which will take place in the city of Yevlakh on 21 September 2023 and during subsequent meetings.
Source: Artsakh Info Center
3:00 pm, September 20, 2023: Residents report that the ceasefire did not actually come into effect until after 3:00 in the afternoon.
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Afternoon, September 20, 2023: Thousands of Armenians gathered outside the Russian forces headquarters outside Stepanakert in the town of Ivanian (Khojaly) (former airport, not operational).
Source: numerous videos, images and statements from Nagorno-Karabakh residents and local media
Evening, September 20, 2023: People came up from the basements. Many people had gone to the airport hoping to be transported, but they were sent back. Those who could returned to their homes. There was no gas, electricity, or running water.
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Evening, September 20, 2023: The Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh reported that Azerbaijan took 16 villages over the course of the offensive. Around 8,000 people were forcibly displaced from communities in Stepanakert. Corresponding organs were placing these IDPs in apartments, hotels, or other types of shelters. At night people returned to the basements for safety.
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
8:30 pm, September 20, 2023: Reports emerged that Mets Shen village was still under fire and under siege and it is “not possible to evacuate the civilian population.” Village head was quoted in Armenian media:
There is no ceasefire in our region. They haven't hit our village yet, but they are shelling the outskirts. We are in an unbearable situation. We managed to evacuate from Yeghtsahogh village, but we could not evacuate our village, women, old people, children... they are all here. Yeghtsahogh is no longer there, it was razed to the ground, and there are no people there either. It's uncertainty, we don't know what to do. We are under complete lockdown. We don't have victims and wounded from the village, but we have many victims from our general area, we don't know the whereabouts of many of them.
Source: News.Am quoting Mets Shen village head.
September 20, 2023: The Office of the Human Rights Defender, reports that at least 10,000 people within Nagorno-Karabkah have been forcibly displaced since Azerbaijan's September 19, 2023 offensive.
Source: Twitter post of the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh
Evening, September 20, 2023: People came up from the basements. Many people had gone to the airport hoping to be transported, but they were sent back. Those who could, returned to their homes, where they had no gas, electricity, or running water.
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
Evening, September 20, 2023: The Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh reported that Azerbaijan took 16 villages over the course of the offensive. Around 8,000 people were forcibly displaced from communities in Stepanakert. NK government was placing these IDPs in apartments, hotels, or other types of shelters. At night people returned to the basements for safety.
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
September 20, 2023: The Office of the Human Rights Defender, reported that at least 10,000 people within Nagorno-Karabkah have been forcibly displaced since Azerbaijan's September 19, 2023 offensive.
Source: Twitter post of the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh
September 20, 2023: Azerbaijani forces killed Russian peacekeepers. This may have occurred as the Russian forces were en route to evacuate civilians.
Source: President of Azerbaijan's apology phone call with President of Russia Vladimir Putin; Azatutyun.am in combination with earlier report from resident of Mets Shen village in Nagorno-Karabakh.
September 21, 2023: Gunfire and shelling reported in and around Stepanakert, despite yesterday's ceasefire agreement. Local police urged Stepanakert residents to take shelter in basements.
Source: Statement published by the Nagorno-Karabakh Interior Ministry on their Telegram channel.
September 21, 2023: Armenians gathered at Russian forces headquarters hoping to leave, “to not be killed,” but the Russian forces told them they have not received a command to let them leave.
Source: Azatutyun.am phone interview with forcibly displaced woman from Martakert region of Nagorno-Karabakh, among the thousands gathered at the Russian peacekeeping contingent's headquarters outside Stepanakert.
Afternoon, September 21, 2023: Reports began surfacing of extrajudicial killings of civilians, including civilians, as well as hostage-taking and sexual violence.
Source: Private message exchanges shared with UNHR researchers
September 21, 2023: All government bodies in Nagorno-Karabakh received orders to fully destroy their archives. “With our own hands we are forced to erase our history.”
Source: Direct communication from the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
September 22, 2023: Distressed Armenians who had been forcibly displaced during the 2020 War began to gather on the Armenian side of the Lachin Corridor, seeking information about or hoping to somehow reunite with their relatives in Nagorno-Karabakh. However, the blockade remains in place.
Source: Bars Media reporting from the Lachin Corridor
September 22, 2023: Very little movement in and out of Nagorno-Karabakh. “Only a few Russian peacekeeper vehicles have entered or exited the Corridor; No aid, no civilians, in either direction.”
Source: TV5 Monde reporting from the Lachin Corridor
September 21-22, 2023: Azerbaijani Telegram users reposted images of missing Armenians that had originally been published by their relatives on social media, mainly images of children and young women, adding instructions to kill, rape, dismember, mutilate and torture them if found.
Source: Direct messages to UNHR containing screenshots of and/or links to the posts; the Office of the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh has also collected and published images of the posts. The accounts that published the posts appear to have been deleted.
September 22, 2023: An entire suburb of Stepanakert (Krkzhan) is empty. Its residents reportedly had fled to seek refuge in the relative safety of the center of Stepanakert.
Source: Video of the suburb posted by local journalist
September 22-23, 2022: A Facebook group that had been dedicated to exchanging household items during the blockade is operating as an organizing center for searching for the missing and for gathering aid, food and finding places to stay for IDPs in Stepanakert.
Source: Posts on the group's Facebook page. Links will not be provided to protect users' security and privacy.
September 23, 2022: Red Cross aid convoy entered Nagorno-Karabakh via the Lachin Corridor. Civilians are still unable to enter or exit.
Source: ICRC
September 23, 2023: There has still been no contact with and no information about the situation in the Martuni and Martakert districts of Nagorno-Karabakh, from which several thousand civilians had been evacuated on September 19.
Source: Posts from local media and public officials [see 1, 2, 3]; Social media posts by users residing in Nagorno-Karabakh. Links will not be provided to protect users' security and privacy.
September 24, 2023: A civilian trapped in Martakert made contact. “I'm surrounded. Let's see if they can get us out [of the village].”
Source: Direct communication with UNHR affiliate via text message
6:30 pm, September 24, 2023: De facto authorities of Nagorno-Karabakh announced that an agreement has been reached to allow the homeless and most vulnerable IDPs to be evacuated to Armenia. The announcement stated that after this first round of evacuations, those desiring to relocate to the Republic of Armenia “will have this opportunity in the coming months.”
Source: Artsakh Info Center
September 24, 2023: As of 6:00 pm on September 24, 2023, 377 forcibly displaced persons entered Armenia from Nagorno-Karabakh, as reported by the Armenian government. That number rose to 1050 by 10:00 pm.
Source: Armenian government official update; Media coverage at the border
September 25, 2023: The Government of the Republic of Armenia announced that as of 5:00 pm on September 25, 2023, 6,650 forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh have entered Armenia.
Source: Armenian Government official update
September 25, 2023: A number of Nagorno-Karabakh government websites have gone offline. While we do not know the exact date when each website went down, the last known date that gov.nkr.am was online was September 21, 2023.
Source: Comparison of screenshots of NKR government website on September 25, 2023 and September 21, 2023 using WayBackMachine
September 25, 2023: With residents desperate to flee before Azerbaijani forces enter the city, traffic from Stepanakert to the Lachin Corridor is at a standstill.
Source: Direct communications from Stepanakert residents to UNHR (video below); social media post from Stepanakert.
Direct communications from Stepanakert residents to UNHR.
September 25, 2023: A devastating explosion occurred at a crowded fuel depot in the Askeran region on September 25, 2023, where hundreds of Armenians had been lined up for fuel. The main hospital in Stepanakert quickly became overrun, lacking sufficient staff and medical supplies (due to the ten-month blockade and the mass exodus of the last two days) to treat the injured civilians. As of September 26th, there were reportedly 68 dead (only 21 of whom have been identified), 290 injured, and 105 missing. The cause of the explosion remains unknown.
Source: Video of hospital staff describing the situation, posted by Stepanakert-based journalist. The blast itself was widely covered on major media outlets worldwide.
September 25, 2023: In Martakert district, severe fuel shortage has made it impossible for some (we do not know exactly how many) residents to evacuate.
Source: Direct communication with UNHR affiliate, social media post from resident of Nagorno-Karabakh
September 25, 2023: Russian forces publish a video in which they are allegedly evacuating civilians from the Martakert, Martuni and Askeran districts to Stepanakert.
Source: Post on the RUS_peacekeeper Telegram account
September 26, 2023: The Nagorno-Karabakh search and rescue operations have begun entering vacant villages to locate the deceased and transfer their bodies to Armenia, as well as to rescue any remaining residents. On September 26th, the search team uncovered the bodies of three soldiers and two civilians from two villages in the Martakert district.
September 26, 2023: Since the prior day, an additional 21,470 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh crossed into the Republic of Armenia. The total number of forcibly displaced persons from NK as a result of the September 19 offensive has reached 28,120.
Source: Official update from the Government of Armenia
September 26, 2023: The government of Nagorno-Karabakh announces that it will provide buses to transport individuals wishing to move to Armenia who don't have their own means of transportation. However, they will have to sign up on a list and wait until after the injured have been transported first.
Source: Post on Artsakh Info Center Facebook Page
September 27, 2023: Since the prior day, an additional 25,509 Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh crossed into the Republic of Armenia. The total number of forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of the September 19 offensive has reached 53,629.
Source: Official update from the Government of Armenia
Source: Artsakh Info Center
September 27, 2023: A column of Azerbaijani forces marched through Stepanakert. The city is unrecognizable. Government buildings and hotels, empty. Store fronts broken, the stores behind them empty inside.
Source: Direct communication with UNHR from a Stepanakert resident
11:10 am, September 28, 2023: The President of Nagorno-Karabakh, elected in snap elections by the National Assembly of Nagorno-Karabakh days before Azerbaijan’s Sept 19-20 military offensive, issued a statement announcing the dissolution of the state institutions of Nagorno-Karabakh. According to the statement, the Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) Republic will “cease to exist” on January 1, 2024. Recall that the dissolution of the state institutions of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic was part of an ultimatum issued by Azerbaijan during its September 19-20 military offensive in which it threatened that “the illegal regime must be dissolved” or the assault “will be continued until the end.”
Source: Artsakh Info Center, Statement by Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan
2:00 pm, September 28, 2023: The Armenian government reported that the total number of forcibly displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of the September 19 offensive has reached 70,500 (or 58% of the population before the evacuation began on September 24).
In less than five days, Nagorno-Karabakh's Armenian population has more than halved.
Source: Official update from the Government of Armenia
September 28, 2023: Armenians who had been evacuated from the outer districts of Nagorno-Karabakh to Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh's capital city, are still waiting to be transported across the Lachin Corridor into the Republic of Armenia.
“I'm still in Stepanakert. I don't know whether it's safe or not. Already 5 days I have been waiting for buses ” one elderly woman who had been evacuated from Martakert informed a UNHR affiliate.
- Direct text message exchange with UNHR affiliate
A terrified TikTok user posted a video from Stepanakert, begging for help to flee from Nagorno-Karabakh:
I am in Stepanakert, there are thousands of people here with me. We are in a terrible situation, very terrible situation. No one is guaranteeing us that they will be able to come get us or send buses. I've been here for three days and haven't seen any buses… Everyone is terrified, tense, they don't know how they will get through the night, they are sleeping on the ground, it's terribly cold.. Lots of people don't have food. The water is dirty. We don't know what has been poured into the water, people are afraid to drink it. There is nowhere to go, there is nowhere to stay. I don't know what is going to happen to our people, when are those cars going to come…please, help. In some way, help!
- Social media post from Stepanakert
September 28, 2023: Azerbaijan's whitewashing of the forced assimilation of the ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh continued with the launch of the webpage “Reintegration portal of Armenian residents living in the Karabakh economic region of Azerbaijan.”
Source: http://reintegration.gov.az
8:00 pm, September 29, 2023: The Armenian government reported that a total of 98,625 ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh have crossed into the Republic of Armenia since Azerbaijan partially opened the Lachin Corridor in the direction of Armenia on September 24th. Only 18% percent of the pre-September 24 population is still in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Source: https://www.gov.am/en/news/item/10365/
September 30, 2023: We are receiving reports that there are still vulnerable civilians - mainly elderly, sick and disabled - who may be unable to flee Nagorno-Karabakh. Some may be stuck in their villages, apartments or basements, alone and unable to seek assistance. The difficulty of establishing communication with anyone still in Stepanakert makes verification nearly impossible. However, some who crossed into Armenia over the past two days have shared accounts of conditions in Stepanakert with our UNHR researcher on the ground in Goris. Moreover, it is highly likely, given the experience of the 2020 war (see [1] and [2]) and the speed of the latest military offensive and subsequent evacuation, that unaccounted for elderly, ill and disabled will again be left behind.
We call upon the international community to immediately send a rescue mission to the area. We call upon Azerbaijan to allow unrestricted access to the rescue mission to ensure that no one who wishes to flee is left behind.
October 1, 2023: The Armenian government reported that a total of 100,490 ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh have crossed into the Republic of Armenia since Azerbaijan partially opened the Lachin Corridor in the direction of Armenia on September 24th.
Source: Official update from the Armenian government
October 1, 2023: Azerbaijan broadcasted a video allegedly showing ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh initiating “reintegration” procedures.
Source: Azerbaijani APA News Agency
October 2, 2023: The final official count of ethnic Armenians who have crossed into Armenia from Nagorno-Karabakh is 100,500. The international community has allowed the ethnic cleansing of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh to reach completion. We are shutting down this Live Monitor as of October 2, 2023. Any additional testimonies we receive will be incorporated into a forthcoming report.