After months of a ceasefire, Azerbaijan has launched what they call an “anti-terrorist” operation against Armenian separatists in an ethnic Armenian enclave.
The disputed region is called Nagorno-Karabakh. The separatists fought back and claimed that “25 people, including at least five civilians, were killed, 80 more were wounded, and six villages had been evacuated.”
Azerbaijan was condemned for this by the U.S., the European Union and Russia. Turkey, however, has spoken in favor of Azerbaijan saying that the country “was forced to take measures it deems necessary on its sovereign territory.”
As RT points out, “The US is not a formal ally of either Armenia or Azerbaijan, but has sold weapons to Baku since 2002, in exchange for access to the country as a launchpad for deploying troops to Afghanistan.”
This conflict prompted protests in the Armenian capital of Yerevan. Protestors have accused Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan of abandoning the separatists. Protestors attempted to storm government buildings but were held back with police using stun grenades.
