Armenia asks top U.N. court to order Azerbaijan to withdraw troops from civilian areas of Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenia has filed a lawsuit against Azerbaijan at the U.N. International Court of Justice, asking that Azerbaijan be ordered to withdraw its military personnel from Nagorno-Karabakh’s civilian establishments and to allow ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh to return or leave at will. Armenia also demanded Azerbaijan give U.N. and Red Cross staff access to Karabakh Armenians, restore utilities in the region, and recognize the validity of documents issued by the unrecognized Republic of Artsakh in Nagorno-Karabakh, such as identity documents and property titles.

Azerbaijan regained full control of Nagorno-Karabakh during “anti-terrorist measures” on September 19-20. The authorities of the unrecognized Republic of Artsakh, a breakaway state established in Nagorno-Karabakh in 1991 with military and economic aid from Armenia, announced its dissolution. In less than two weeks, nearly 100,000 of the 120,000 ethnic Armenians living there have fled the region.