Today in Nagorno-Karabakh, the guns are relatively silent. But, 18 months since war brutally redrew the map of control over the disputed territory, those living there remain anxious.
In the morning of 27 September 2020, the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh, Stepanakert, woke to the sounds of cluster munitions exploding. It felt as if the fireworks were continuing from the night before, when the city had celebrated a public holiday. In the 44 days that followed, at least 3,700 Armenian and Karabakh soldiers – many of them young men – were killed in an offensive by Azerbaijani troops seeking to take key positions deep within the territory.
The real death toll is likely higher. Hundreds of Armenian servicemen remain in Azerbaijani captivity today, and the fates of people who went missing are unclear. Tens of thousands of Armenians were displaced, and hundreds of villages were taken under Azerbaijani control. In effect, Nagorno-Karabakh lost 70% of the territory it had controlled since 1994 – and with it, a sense of control over its future. The territory, which is disputed between Armenia and Azerbaijan, is today home to roughly 100,000 Armenians – and is governed by an unrecognised administration.
