PanARMENIAN.Net – Displaced residents of Nagorno-Karabakh (Artsakh) are applying to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) over violations related to property loss and the right to return, the International and Comparative Law Center NGO reported.

In cooperation with partners, the organization has carried out extensive legal work aimed at protecting the rights of people forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh, with the goal of documenting violations following the 2020 war and the events of 2023 through international legal mechanisms.

“As a result of forced displacement, thousands of people have been deprived of the ability to exercise their fundamental rights. The right of Artsakh Armenians to live in their homeland has been violated, including their right to peaceful enjoyment of property, as enshrined in Article 1 of Protocol No. 1 to the European Convention on Human Rights,” the statement said.

According to the Center, it is important not only to protect individual rights but also to recognize and ensure the implementation of the collective right of return, as it concerns the right of an entire people to return to their homeland.

“At present, the affected individuals lack effective domestic legal remedies, since the violating party is Azerbaijan. Under these conditions, the only effective legal avenue remains the use of the mechanisms of the European Court of Human Rights.

Within this process, the initiative is receiving displaced persons who provide documentation of their residence in Artsakh, ownership of property, and other necessary materials for preparing individual applications to the ECHR.

Each application includes personal accounts of property loss, circumstances of displacement, and the severe and inhumane conditions during the blockade of Artsakh. These narratives collectively form a comprehensive picture of violations related to forced displacement and the right to return. In many cases, applications are accompanied by photographs of property and other media materials reflecting the applicants’ lives prior to displacement.

The first applications were submitted in late 2024, and the process expanded in 2025. As of April 2026, the interests of more than 1,000 individuals have been represented through over 500 applications,” the statement said.

On September 19, 2023, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale offensive against Nagorno-Karabakh, subjecting the territory to massive shelling. A day later, authorities agreed to a ceasefire proposal by Russian peacekeepers under conditions set by Baku, including disarmament and the dissolution of Nagorno-Karabakh structures. The attack resulted in 223 deaths, including 20 civilians, among them six minors. Starting September 24, more than 100,000 residents were forcibly displaced to Armenia.