Gas station blast kills dozens as thousands flee Nagorno-Karabakh
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Refugees queue in vehicles near the border town of Kornidzor, arriving from Nagorno-Karabakh to Armenia, on Sept. 26. Photo: Alain Jocard / AFP via Getty Images
At least 68 people were killed in an explosion at a Nagorno-Karabakh fuel depot this week as thousands of residents attempted to flee the region, the local human rights ombudsman said on Tuesday.
The big picture: Monday's explosion came just days after Azerbaijan attacked Nagorno-Karabakh and took control of the previously autonomous region, marking a major escalation in a decades-long dispute over the territory.
- Azerbaijan's offensive renewed speculation of ethnic cleansing of the predominantly Armenian local population, igniting a mass exodus from the region and leaving some 120,000 people displaced.
- More than 28,000 people had already fled to Armenia as of Tuesday.
Driving the news: The cause of Monday's explosion near Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh's capital, was not immediately clear. It occurred at a busy gas station as people scrambled to fill up their cars.
- Some 105 people remained missing and about 290 people were injured in the explosion as of late Tuesday local time. Most are in severe condition, according to the Human Rights Defender of Nagorno-Karabakh.
- The Human Rights Defender noted that local health workers are struggling to treat those injured due to deficient capacity to treat the patients as the region's medical supply was depleted by a nine-month blockade by Azerbaijan.
State of play: U.S. Agency for International Development chief Samantha Power, who was in Armenia on Tuesday, announced that the U.S. would provide $11.5 million in humanitarian aid, including food and psychological, assistance for those who have been displaced.
- She called on Azerbaijan to "take concrete steps to protect the rights of civilians in Nagorno-Karabakh."
- "President Biden wanted me to come and deliver a message on his behalf," she said."The United States supports Armenia's sovereignty, territorial integrity, and democracy."
- Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in a call on Tuesday "to emphasize the need for Azerbaijan to refrain from further hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh and provide unhindered humanitarian access," State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said in a statement.
Context: Hostilities between Azerbaijan and Armenia, former Soviet republics, persist despite last year's Russia-brokered cease-fire that came after Azerbaijan launched an attack on Armenia, escalating a decades-long dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh.
- The entrance to the Lachin Corridor – a lifeline to Armenia for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh – has been mostly closed since December.
- Russian peacekeepers stationed at the entrance to the corridor were supposed to ensure free movement, but the area remained cut off from the rest of the world for months.
- Azerbaijan suddenly declared an "evacuation" of the local population last week, launched what it called an "offensive" and seized control of the region.
Go deeper: U.S. calls for end to hostilities in Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijan launches attack
Editor’s note: This story has been updated with Blinken’s call.
