UN Security Council Holds Emergency Meeting on Humanitarian Crisis in Nagorno-Karabakh The United Nations Security Council convened an emergency meeting in response to a call from Armenia regarding the dire humanitarian situation in the mainly Armenian-populated region of Nagorno-Karabakh in neighboring Azerbaijan. Armenia's UN Ambassador, Mher Margaryan, wrote a letter to the US ambassador, who holds the Security Council presidency this month, requesting the meeting.

The meeting was scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Margaryan highlighted the complete blockade of the Lachin Corridor by Azerbaijan, which has led to severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel in Nagorno-Karabakh. He described the blockade as an act of mass atrocity that targets the indigenous people of the region and forces them to leave their homeland.

Margaryan urged the Security Council to prevent mass atrocities, including war crimes, ethnic cleansing, crimes against humanity, and genocide. Nagorno-Karabakh came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces in 1994, backed by the Armenian military. Armenian forces also gained control of a significant amount of territory surrounding the Azerbaijani region.

However, Azerbaijan regained control of the surrounding territory in a six-week war in 2020. The Russian-brokered armistice that ended the conflict left the region's capital, Stepanakert, connected to Armenia only by the Lachin Corridor. Margaryan accused Azerbaijan of violating the armistice and international humanitarian law, as well as orders by the International Court of Justice.

He emphasized that Azerbaijan should ensure unimpeded movement along the Lachin Corridor in both directions, as ordered by the UN's highest court. In another development, former chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Luis Moreno Ocampo, warned that Azerbaijan is preparing genocide against ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Ocampo called on the Security Council to refer the matter to the international tribunal. He stated that the blockade has created a reasonable basis to believe that genocide is being committed, according to the UN convention's definition. The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh remains tense, with accusations and counter-accusations from both sides.

The emergency meeting of the UN Security Council provides an opportunity to address the dire humanitarian crisis and work towards a lasting solution for peace and stability in the region.