Author: George Mamian

Washington, D.C. – A letter spearheaded by Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and Congresswoman Anna Eshoo (D-CA), addressed to President Biden urging sanctions against Azerbaijan, humanitarian aid, and ensuring the safety of the Armenian people, was supported by 75 Members of Congress, reported the Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly).

The letter outlined Azerbaijan's "unprovoked military offensive on Nagorno-Karabakh" on September 19 "in an attempt to subjugate the region's ethnically Armenian population by force," that resulted in a day-long vicious attack, causing the displacement of thousands of civilians and over 200 deaths. This assault followed a nine-month blockade that created a man-made humanitarian crisis and denied 120,000 Armenians access to food and medicine, among other essentials.

"We believe the United States must make clear to Azerbaijan that its unprovoked aggression against Artsakh is unacceptable and will be met with an appropriate response," the letter stated.

"Azerbaijan's assault and subjugation of Artsakh has left the region's Armenian population with no option but to flee, fearing for their future under Azerbaijan's brutal authoritarian rule," the letter continued.

Citing leading scholars on genocide and atrocities, including Chief Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno Ocampo, the letter emphasized that the "U.S. has a moral obligation to do whatever is necessary to bring an end to this needless suffering and ensure Azerbaijan faces consequences for engaging in ethnic cleansing," and requested from the Biden Administration enforcement of Section 907 of the FREEDOM Support Act, "a provision of current law that prohibits U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan, and impose targeted sanctions on Azerbaijani officials under the Global Magnitsky Act to make clear to Azerbaijan that its aggression will not be tolerated."

Providing "robust humanitarian assistance to support Artsakh's displaced population" was also outlined, as well as shoring up support from the international community to initiate an international humanitarian relief operation.

Finally, the letter underscored the importance of taking proper actions to "ensure the safe evacuation of Artsakh's population to Armenia, including through the immediate deployment of observers to the Lachin Corridor, as well as direct engagement with Azerbaijani authorities to secure amnesty for Artsakh's local leaders."

"The Assembly welcomes the continued efforts by Congress, including this initiative by Speaker Emerita Pelosi and Congresswoman Eshoo on the critically important need for the U.S. to take decisive action, including sanctioning Azerbaijan for its crimes against humanity," stated Assembly Executive Director Bryan Ardouny.

Last week, at the Assembly's tribute for former Secretary of the Navy Paul Ignatius, Speaker Emerita Pelosi and Rep. Eshoo, who headlined the event, highlighted the importance of persevering in their efforts on Capitol Hill "to move the needle" when it comes to aiding the Armenian people of Artsakh and holding Azerbaijan accountable.

The letter was cosigned by Representatives Nanette Barragán (D-CA), Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Gus Bilirakis (R-FL), Julia Brownley (D-CA), Tony Cárdenas (D-CA), Joaquin Castro (D-TX), Judy Chu (D-CA), Jim Costa (D-CA), Madeleine Dean (D-PA), Lloyd Doggett (D-TX), Dwight Evans (D-PA), Robert Garcia (D-CA), Brian Higgins (D-NY), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Seth Magaziner (D-RI), Morgan McGarvey (D-KY), Kevin Mullin (D-CA), Gwen Moore (D-WI), Grace Napolitano (D-CA), Donald Norcross (D-NJ), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Frank Pallone, Jr (D-NJ), Chris Pappas (D-NH), Linda Sánchez (D-CA), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Brad Sherman (D-CA), Haley Stevens (D-MI), Paul Tonko (D-NY), David Valadao (R-CA), Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Lou Correa (D-CA), Daniel Goldman (D-NY), Jimmy Gomez (D-CA), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL), Susie Lee (D-NV), John Larson (D-CT), Mike Levin (D-CA), Tom McClintock (R-CA), James McGovern (D-MA), Jennifer McClellan (D-VA), Grace Meng (D-NY), Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Katie Porter (D-CA), Deborah Ross (D-NC), Mary Gay Scanlon (D-PA), Brad Schneider (D-IL), Eric Swalwell (D-CA), Dina Titus (D-NV), Lori Trahan (D-MA), David Trone (D-MD), Jake Auchincloss (D-MA), Salud Carbajal (D-CA), Sean Casten (D-IL), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL), Katherine Clark (D-MA), Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Raúl Grijalva (D-AZ), Stephen Lynch (D-MA), Betty McCollum (D-MN), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Mark Takano (D-CA), Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Maxine Waters (D-CA), Susan Wild (D-PA), Ted Lieu (D-CA) and Nikema Williams (D-GA).

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a non-partisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

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NR# 2023-37

Hungry and exhausted ethnic Armenian families are fleeing their homes in Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijan defeated separatist forces in the breakaway region last week.

The ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh – part of Azerbaijan that had been beyond Baku’s control since the dissolution of the Soviet Union – began fleeing into Armenia this week after separatist forces were routed in a lightning operation by Azerbaijan’s military.

At least 19,000 of the 120,000 ethnic Armenians who call Nagorno-Karabakh home have already crossed into Armenia, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan was quoted by Russia’s TASS news agency as saying, with hundreds of cars and buses crammed with belongings snaking down the mountain road out of Azerbaijan.

Hungry and exhausted ethnic Armenian families are fleeing their homes in Nagorno-Karabakh after Azerbaijan defeated separatist forces in the breakaway region last week.

The ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh – part of Azerbaijan that had been beyond Baku’s control since the dissolution of the Soviet Union – began fleeing into Armenia this week after separatist forces were routed in a lightning operation by Azerbaijan’s military.

At least 19,000 of the 120,000 ethnic Armenians who call Nagorno-Karabakh home have already crossed into Armenia, Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Khachatryan was quoted by Russia’s TASS news agency as saying, with hundreds of cars and buses crammed with belongings snaking down the mountain road out of Azerbaijan.

See all the photos at https://www.aljazeera.com/gallery/2023/9/26/photos-thousands-of-ethnic-armenians-flee-from-nagorno-karabakh

The Los Angeles Armenian American community is ramping up its public concerns over an international regional conflict between ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijan. 

Last week, a protest blocked the southbound 101 in downtown Los Angeles after Azerbaijan resumed military attacks on an enclave where roughly 120,000 ethnic Armenians live. Thousands have fled their homes, according to Human Rights Watch, which added that most cannot flee because Azerbaijan had sealed the border.

The enclave in dispute is known as Nagorno Karabakh. Azerbaijan has laid claim to the land, which is at the heart of the dispute.

The recent escalation has raised concerns from several prominent Armenian voices from the entertainment community.

For Grammy Award winning Serj Tankian and Cher, and TV star Kim Kardashian, a crisis in a little-known region is not just a humanitarian disaster in a faraway land.

Using their star power, the three are elevating the plight of the vulnerable population

Tankian has been the most active and vocal. In addition to his own activism, he persuaded Peter Gabriel, Roger Waters, Tom Morello and Stewart Copeland to sign on to an appeal to end the blockade food and medicine from reaching the ethnic Armenians.

Tankian’s activism has roiled Azerbaijan. The country’s Press Council threatened the BBC with revocation of its accreditation over an interview it did with Tankian.

Cher has joined the call, penning an article with film producer Eric Esrailian for Newsweek,“You cannot Erase Us,” where they called Azerbaijan’s “campaign of ethnic cleansing and the brazen attempts at cultural erasure. . .barbaric.” In a YouTube plea, she called for sanctions, and to stop sending weapons and American tax dollars.

Meanwhile, Kardashian, who had traveled to the region in 2019 with her sister, Kourtney, recently posted about the “full-scale attacks by Azerbaijan on the civilian population after months of blockade and starvation.” It is a “potential for Genocide of Armenians in Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh,” Kim Kardashian wrote. Reposting her coauthored Rolling Stone article on the conflict from last month, she pleaded for assistance from the U.S. to “stop another Armenian Genocide.”

So far, their pleas have fallen on deaf political ears, leaving a population of locals vulnerable to the Azerbaijani military.

“Artsakh needs international peacekeepers and a humanitarian corridor,” tweeted Tankian, who added the people in Nagorno Karabakh have “a right of self-determination.”

Maria Armoudian is a senior lecturer at the University of Auckland and author of three books, including Lawyers Beyond Borders: Advancing International Human Rights through Local Laws and Courts.

(Reuters) – Russia has protested to Azerbaijan over comments it made about weekend regional elections in areas of Ukraine claimed by Moscow, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday.

She also accused Armenia of making “unacceptable and harmful” statements that were damaging to the prospects for a peace settlement between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the breakaway territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.