NNA – More than 28,000 refugees have fled Nagorno-Karabakh, a majority ethnic Armenian breakaway enclave defeated in a lightning offensive by Azerbaijan last week, Armenia said.nbsp;
Azerbaijan opened the only road leading from the region to Armenia on Sunday, four days after the rebels agreed to disarm under the terms of a ceasefire agreement that puts the disputed region under Bakursquo;s control.
Some 28,120 refugees have so far fled Nagorno-Karabakh. As the refugees flooded into Armenia, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for their rights to be protected.
ldquo;The Secretary-General is very concerned about the displacement of people we are seeing to Armenia,rdquo; Guterresrsquo; spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. ldquo;First of all, itrsquo;s essential that the rights of the displaced populations be protected and that they receive humanitarian support.rdquo;
Later Tuesday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Azerbaijanrsquo;s President Ilham Aliyev that he must protect civilians still in Nagorno-Karabakh and allow for humanitarian aid to reach them there.
Blinken ldquo;underscored the urgency of no further hostilities, that there be unconditional protections and freedom of movement for civilians, that there be unhindered humanitarian access to Nagorno Karabakhquot;, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters. — AFP
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