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Referring to the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh in an article published on January 11 and titled How “starving” and “poverty-stricken” residents of Stepanakert live in conditions of “blockade, the Azerbaijani website faktyoxla.az claimed that there is neither blockade, nor any humanitarian crisis there.
Note that since December 12, individuals posing as “eco-activists” and associated with the authorities of Azerbaijan have blocked the Goris-Stepanakert road, as a result of which the population of Nagorno Karabakh is in a de facto blockade. There is a shortage of food, basic necessities and medical supplies.
Although the website presents itself as a fact-checking media outlet, it is distinguished by its propaganda content that clearly contradicts the basic principles of fact-checking. It is noteworthy that there is another Azerbaijani fact-checking website with this name, faktyoxla.info.
The Azerbaijani author notes in the article that the information about empty shops in Stepanakert at the end of December and at the beginning of January, kindergartens closing due to lack of food, the closing of the central market is “Armenian propaganda”, allegedly revealing the false nature of the food crisis in Nagorno Karabakh through some photos.
At the request of the Fact Investigation Platform, the residents of Stepanakert have sent videos documenting the lack of food and basic necessities in Nagorno Karabakh.
The filming was done in department stores and sales points located in the central streets of Stepanakert on January 18 between 15:00 and 16:00.
The videos we got show that most of the shops in the capital of Nagorno-Karabakh are closed, and in the ones that are still open, a number of important goods are missing, not only food, but also household items.
The vegetable shop is closed. Empty boxes can be seen in front of the shop.
In one of the department stores, the departments of household goods are half empty. In the grocery section there is a small amount of meat, mostly poultry. There is almost no pasta and grains.
The shops at the intersection of Azatamartikneri and Mashtots avenues (one of the central parts of Stepanakert) were closed at the time of filming.
It is noteworthy that in its official reports about the consequences of the blockade, the Armenian side does not refer to an already existing famine, as the Azerbaijani resource claims, but points to its imminent danger in case the blockade continues.
Due to the lack of food, since January 18, a coupon-based system for the sale and purchase of food to the population has been operating in Nagorno Karabakh. Coupons are provided for the purpose of making relevant in-store purchases.
The international community has also referred to the humanitarian consequences of the blockade
Not only Armenian media, but also reputable international media outlets, including CNN, BBC, Time, Al Jazeera, The Economist, etc., have referred to the blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh and its humanitarian consequences.
International organizations and individual states have also expressed concern about the situation. At the UN Security Council meeting on December 21, 2022, representatives of France, Ireland, the USA and other countries spoke about unblocking the Lachin Corridor and referred to humanitarian problems due to the blockage, insisting on the danger of a humanitarian crisis if the road remains blocked.
The international human rights organization Freedom House also issued a statement on January 14 regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh blockade, stating that the closure of the Lachin Corridor is “creating a humanitarian crisis within Nagorno-Karabakh as vital supplies dwindle”.
Thus, the claim of the Azerbaijani website that the information about “starving Stepanakert residents” is the result of Armenian propaganda is false. International organizations and a number of states, as well as the media, have reported that there is a risk of a humanitarian crisis as a result of the blockade of the Lachin Corridor in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Loosineh Voskanyan
