The civilian population suffered widespread human rights abuses as a result of heavy fighting that erupted between Azerbaijan and Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh in September. Conflict-related violence led to deaths, injuries, destruction of livelihoods and displacement. Authorities intensified...

A joint investigation has revealed that at least twelve Armenian public figures and officials, including journalists and human rights defenders were targeted with NSO Group’s Pegasus spyware amid conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, between October 2020 and December 2022.  Evidence from the investigation,...

The ongoing blockade of the Lachin corridor is endangering the lives of thousands of people in the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh, Amnesty International said today. The human rights organization called on Azerbaijan’s authorities and Russian peacekeepers to immediately unblock the route and...

The Covid-19 pandemic, Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and a pervasive focus on ‘traditional values’ have contributed to a deterioration in human rights and rising levels of domestic violence and other forms of gender-based violence in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, Amnesty International said...

The conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh territory has caused decades of misery for older people, Amnesty International said in two new reports published today.  The conflict – first fought from 1988 to 1994, and then during another escalation in late 2020 – sawolder...

Reacting on the news that Tofig Yagublu, an Azerbaijani opposition politician, was re-arrested today after being arbitrarily detained and severely beaten by police on 1 December, Natalia Nozadze, Amnesty International’s Researcher on South Caucasus, said: “This latest detention of Tofig Yagublu...

The Azerbaijani authorities must immediately put an end to a despicable campaign of gender-based violence against women human rights defenders and activists, and investigate and bring to account those responsible for it, whether they be private individuals, state officials or members of the...

Virtual consultations this week move closer to a diplomatic agreement to protect civilians Amnesty International has documented disastrous impact of explosive weapons on civilians in multiple conflicts Global civil society network outlines key changes needed Dozens of states convening this week...

Field investigators visited dozens of strike sites in Azerbaijan and Armenia Evidence refutes both sides’ denials they launched indiscriminate strikes, including with cluster munitions Other weapons used include ballistic missiles and volleys of notoriously imprecise rockets and artillery The...

Both Azerbaijani and Armenian forces committed war crimes during recent fighting in Nagorno-Karabakh, Amnesty International said, after verifying videos showing the decapitation of captives and the desecration of the corpses of opposing forces. Amnesty International analysed 22 videos that depict...

Amnesty International has verified the use of banned cluster bombs by Armenia for the first time in the current Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, following an attack on the city of Barda in Azerbaijan. Yesterday (28 October 2020), at approximately 1.30pm local time, one or several Smerch rockets were...

Both Armenia and Azerbaijan must immediately stop the use of heavy explosive weapons with wide-area effects in densely populated civilian areas, Amnesty International warned today. Experts from Amnesty International’s Crisis Response team have examined available evidence which strongly suggests the...

Protection of civilians caught in the escalating conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region must be prioritised, Amnesty International said today, after corroborating the use of banned cluster bombs in the region. Over the weekend, footage consistent with the use of...