At least 20 people were killed and nearly 300 others were injured in an explosion at a crowded gas station in Nagorno-Karabakh as thousands of people rushed to flee into Armenia, the separatist region’s authorities said Tuesday.
The Associated Press has the story:
At least 20 dead in gas station explosion in Nagorno-Karabakh
Newslooks-YEREVAN, Armenia (AP)
At least 20 people were killed and nearly 300 others were injured in an explosion at a crowded gas station in Nagorno-Karabakh as thousands of people rushed to flee into Armenia, the separatist region’s authorities said Tuesday.
Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh gather as they wait to receive humanitarian aid at a temporary camp in Armenia’s Goris in Syunik region, Armenia, on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. Thousands of Armenians have streamed out of Nagorno-Karabakh after the Azerbaijani military reclaimed full control of the breakaway region last week. (AP Photo/Vasily Krestyaninov)
Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh look at the Nagorno-Karabakh landscape on their way to Kornidzor, the town in Syunik region, Armenia, Monday, Sept. 25, 2023. Thousands of Armenians have streamed out of Nagorno-Karabakh after the Azerbaijani military reclaimed full control of the breakaway region last week. (AP Photo/Vasily Krestyaninov)
Residents of Nagorno-Karabakh scrambled to flee as soon as Azerbaijan lifted a 10-month blockade on the region’s only road to Armenia. That blockade had caused severe shortages of food, medicine and fuel. While Azerbaijan has pledged to respect the rights of Armenians, many residents feared reprisals.
Ethnic Armenians gather in hope to leave Nagorno-Karabakh region for Armenia in the center of Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh on Monday, Sept. 25, 2023.The Armenian government said that more 6,500 Nagorno-Karabakh residents had fled to Armenia as of Monday evening. Moscow said that Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh were assisting the evacuation. (AP Photo/Aspram Avanesyan)
The explosion took place as people lined up to fill their cars at a gas station outside Stepanakert, the region’s capital, late on Monday. The separatist government’s health department said that 13 bodies have been found and seven people have died of injuries from the blast; another 290 people have been hospitalized and scores of them remain in grave condition.
Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh sit in a truck on their way to Goris in Syunik region, Armenia, on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. Thousands of Armenians have streamed out of Nagorno-Karabakh after the Azerbaijani military reclaimed full control of the breakaway region last week. (AP Photo/Gayane Yenokyan)
The cause of the blast remains unclear, but Nagorno-Karabakh presidential aide David Babayan said initial information suggested that sabotage was unlikely.
Armenia’s health ministry said a helicopter brought some blast victims to Armenia on Tuesday morning, and more flights were expected. The Russian peacekeeping force in Nagorno-Karabakh also reportedly was bringing in victims to Armenia by helicopter.
Ethnic Armenians gather in hope to leave Nagorno-Karabakh region for Armenia in the center of Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. The Armenian government said that more 6,500 Nagorno-Karabakh residents had fled to Armenia as of Monday evening. Moscow said that Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh were assisting the evacuation. (AP Photo/Siranush Sargsyan)
Azerbaijani presidential aide Hikmet Hajiyev said on X, formerly Twitter, that hospitals in Azerbaijan were ready to treat victims, but not if any had been taken there. Azerbaijan has sent in burn-treatment medicine and other humanitarian aid, he said.
Azerbaijan also said Tuesday that 30 metric tons (33 U.S. tons) of gasoline and 34 metric tons (37 U.S. tons) of diesel fuel were being sent into the region.
A child holds a toy as ethnic Armenians gather in hope to leave Nagorno-Karabakh region for Armenia in the center of Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023.The Armenian government said that more 6,500 Nagorno-Karabakh residents had fled to Armenia as of Monday evening. Moscow said that Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh were assisting the evacuation. (AP Photo/Siranush Sargsyan)
The Azerbaijani military routed Armenian forces in a 24-hour blitz last week, forcing the separatist authorities to agree to lay down weapons and start talks on Nagorno-Karabakh’s “reintegration” into Azerbaijan.
Gasoline has been in short supply in Stepanakert for months, and the explosion further adds to anxiety about whether residents will be able drive the 35 kilometers (22 miles) to the border.
A child sleep on a bag with clothes and other belongings as ethnic Armenians gather in hope to leave Nagorno-Karabakh region for Armenia in the center of Stepanakert, Nagorno-Karabakh on Monday, Sept. 25, 2023.The Armenian government said that more 6,500 Nagorno-Karabakh residents had fled to Armenia as of Monday evening. Moscow said that Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh were assisting the evacuation. (AP Photo/Aspram Avanesyan)
Cars bearing large loads on their roofs crowded the streets of Stepanakert, and residents stood or lay along sidewalks next to heaps of luggage.
Nagorno-Karabakh authorities asked residents to hold off on leaving in order to keep the road clear for emergency services and said buses would be provided for those who want to leave.
Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh loneup to receive humanitarian aid at a temporary camp in Armenia’s Goris in Syunik region, Armenia, on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. Thousands of Armenians have streamed out of Nagorno-Karabakh after the Azerbaijani military reclaimed full control of the breakaway region last week. (AP Photo/Vasily Krestyaninov)
Nagorno-Karabakh was an autonomous region within Azerbaijan under the Soviet Union, but separatist sentiment grew in the USSR’s dying years and then flared into war.
An Ethnic Armenian woman from Nagorno-Karabakh holds her newborn baby as she waits to receive humanitarian aid at a temporary camp in Armenia’s Goris in Syunik region, Armenia, on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. Thousands of Armenians have streamed out of Nagorno-Karabakh after the Azerbaijani military reclaimed full control of the breakaway region last week. (AP Photo/Vasily Krestyaninov)
Nagorno-Karabakh came under the control of ethnic Armenian forces, backed by the Armenian military, in separatist fighting that ended in 1994. During a war in 2020, Azerbaijan took parts of Nagorno-Karabakh along with surrounding territory that it lost of control of during the earlier conflict.
Ethnic Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh lineup to receive humanitarian aid at a temporary camp in Armenia’s Goris in Syunik region, Armenia, on Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023. Thousands of Armenians have streamed out of Nagorno-Karabakh after the Azerbaijani military reclaimed full control of the breakaway region last week. (AP Photo/Vasily Krestyaninov)
Under the armistice that ended the 2020 fighting, Russia deployed a peacekeeping force of about 2,000 to the region.
