The Lemkin Institute has strongly condemned Azerbaijan's ongoing war of aggression against Armenia and its people.
The Institute said in a statement on Sunday, September 18 Dthat dspite the ceasefire agreements, Azerbaijan's overall genocidal rhetoric by its state authorities demonstrates an enduring determination to eliminate the Armenian national identity and its territory.
On September 13, 2022, around midnight local time, the Republic of Armenia began to be bombarded by artillery fire from the neighboring Republic of Azerbaijan, a historical adversary whose violent actions threaten the existence of the Armenian people and their homeland.
The recent bombing targeted the Armenian border towns of Vardenis, Goris, Kapan and Jermuk, but the Lemkin Institue has concerns that it will escalate and reach the capital of Yerevan if immediate measures are not taken to resolve the conflict and oppose Azerbaijani impunity.
“The presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkey have threatened to erase Armenia from the world’s map on multiple occasions. The Republic of Armenia has estimated that it has lost 135 soldiers in this recent attack. Azerbaijan has also taken new prisoners of war which add to the ones illegally detained by Azerbaijan since the 2020 war. There are also indications that Azerbaijan deliberately targeted the civilian population in the above-mentioned cities,” the Institute says.
“The Lemkin Institute would like to draw attention to our recent Red Flag Alert on Azerbaijan published on August 15th, in which we called on “all international and state bodies to monitor Turkey and Azerbaijan for genocidal ideology and practices, to place pressure on Turkey and Azerbaijan to cease their genocidal threats against the Armenian people, and to reinforce the security of Armenians and the Armenian identity in the Republic of Armenia, the Republic of Artsakh, and in Diaspora communities worldwide.”
“Once again, we urge the international community to explicitly condemn this attack on the Republic of Armenia and to take measures against the autocratic government of Azerbaijan and its ally Turkey.
“International bodies and states cannot continue to ignore Azerbaijan's aggressive behavior towards the Republic of Armenia. If its actions remain ignored and unpunished as they have been so far, the world will soon witness an escalation of the violence and another genocide against the Armenians.”
