The fates of 120,000 ethnic Armenians living in the region known as Nagorno-Karabakh became uncertain after the Azerbaijani military took control following a 24-hour blitz on September 20. The conflict ended after the de facto government surrendered to Azerbaijan, giving them full control. Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh are now fleeing for fear of ethnic cleansing, according to Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.
“Armenians have been in this region for 4,000 years. I mean, this is one of the oldest inhabited areas in Armenia and areas in the world,” said Scout Tufankjian, an Armenian-American photographer. “But at the end of the day, for me, this is where people live. These are people’s homes. This is where they were born. This is where their grandparents were born. They should be able to live in their homes.”
Nagorno-Karabakh is an enclave that occupies 20% of present-day Azerbaijan but is home to a 120,000 ethnic Armenian majority. The region has a long history of territorial conflict, the latest stemming from the nine-month-long Azerbaijan blockade of the Lachin Corridor, the only road that connects Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. The obstruction triggered a humanitarian crisis in the region, leaving all 120,000 Armenians without food, water or health resources as Azerbaijan tried to starve out civilians and military personnel.
The armed conflict beginning last week was declared to be part of an “anti-terror” operation by Azerbaijan and has been responsible for the deaths of at least 200 Armenians and many more injuries, according to CNN. Over 6,500 Armenians from 16 villages have since evacuated back to Armenia, and those still left in the region have been completely disarmed as per the terms of the ceasefire.
The declaration of the ceasefire occurred just before the date of the Independence Day of Armenia, which marked their proclamation of sovereignty from the Soviet Union on September 21, 1991.
“We’re not celebrating this year,” said Mane Berikyan, vice president of the USC Armenian Student Association and the executive chair of the All-Armenian Student Association. “It’s one of the darkest chapters of modern Armenian history for us, and so we can’t in good conscience celebrate the loss of something that’s been so integral to our understanding of the Armenian nation for centuries. It was a day of mourning mostly for the Armenian community.”
The Nagorno-Karabakh region has been the source of decades of tension leading up to this week’s conflict. After the Soviet Union’s collapse in the late 1980s, the regional parliament voted to become part of Armenia, triggering a war with Azerbaijan that concluded with Armenia in shaky control of the region due to a periodically broken ceasefire.
“I am pessimistic of the current ceasefire, given our history with these nations,” said Nicole Antounian, an Armenian USC alumnus. “They have repeatedly violated the ceasefire treaty and will continue to do so.”
In September 2020, clashes broke out again with heavy casualties sustained through November, when Russia brokered another ceasefire between the two countries. In the agreement, a small strip of land – the Lachin Corridor – was established. Russian peacekeepers were to monitor this transit route that connected Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia. However, Azerbaijan blocked this route in December 2022 after accusing the Armenians of using it to bring in military supplies, resulting in the past nine months of unease for the Armenians that culminated in the recent armed conflict.
“I feel helpless and heartbroken,” Antounian said. “I feel like the world is being completely complacent to the atrocities being committed against my people. I never thought I would witness another Armenian genocide.”
Berikyan, who is a junior studying International Relations, says that USC Armenian students “feel invisible” on campus due to the lack of recognition from the university and the public in general.
“There’s almost 1,000 Armenians on campus. We feel alone, and it is very hurtful to feel invisible in this community, but I guess it’s something we’ve come to terms with and we’ve decided to fill those gaps ourselves,” Berikyan said. “For us to do anything but pour all of our resources and outcry towards this would be for us to be complicit in the genocide ongoing in the region.”
However, sending help to the Armenians is difficult due to the circumstances and lack of resources to contact them. Armenian student groups at colleges and universities across the nation are forced to wait it out while the conflict continues.
“The sad reality is that we haven’t been able to fundraise [since] nothing goes into the region. Funds and money aren’t the problem,” said Berikyan, who is trying to organize fundraising efforts with partners at UCLA. “The main problem is that there is no way to get food, medicine or basic supplies into Nagorno-Karabakh to help out the trapped Armenians.”
In the meantime, Berikyan says that spreading awareness of the issue is a big step in helping the Armenian people.
“All I hope is that people pay attention, read the news, spread awareness, even if it’s an Instagram story repost. Every small thing helps,” she said.
Visit the USC Armenian Student Association’s social media for more information.