19 September 2022, a message from our sisters in WiB Armenia
Just after midnight on September 13, 2022, Azerbaijani Armed Forces launched a large-scale attack along the entire eastern border of Armenia. They used artillery, mortar, and attack drones to target Armenian military positions and civilian areas, including the towns of Vardenis, Jermuk, Sisian, Goris, and Kapan in the Gegharkunik and Syunik regions of the Republic of Armenia (sovereign territory of Armenia).
News organizations such as Al Jazeera, the Jerusalem Post, and Reuters and international actors like the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, however, fail to use language that recognizes who started hostilities: the Azerbaijani state or the Armenian people of Artsakh and the Republic of Armenia who are being attacked.
Headlines tell the world that “clashes erupted” and international actors call on “both sides” to show restraint. In this information space, Armenians are not killed; they simply die. When Azerbaijani forces bomb Armenian borders, settlements, and civilian infrastructure, Armenians somehow become equal actors.
As a result of Azerbaijan’s invasion of Armenia, Armenian authorities have so far reported at least.
165 soldiers dead
10 prisoners of war
7 civilians wounded
7,600 civilians displaced
192 homes damaged
There are reports that the fragile ceasefire is under threat and there are credible reports that Azerbaijan is planning yet another military offensive by widening the geography of the aggression against Armenia, including from the direction of Nakhijevan. We are expecting to experience a full-scale invasion very soon.
Turkey continues its Genocidal rhetoric and supports Azerbaijan. Turkish Member of Parliament Mustafa Destici just said:
“We say to the Armenian administration, make up your mind. I remind you once again that the Turkish nation has the power to erase Armenia from history/geography, and that they stand at the limit of our patience.”
This is a direct threat of another genocide.
Azerbaijani troops raped and mutilated an Armenian female soldier, filmed her dead body and shared the footage on social networks. They cut off her fingers and legs and stuck her severed fingers in her mouth, all while laughing. It’s horrific.
Another horrible crime by Azerbaijan: on Sept 13 2022 they brutally killed another Armenian female serviceman-medical nurse, stripped & filmed her tortured naked body; then published the video targeting the Armenian public with confidence in impunity. The video evidence is verified.
We are writing these to record and draw attention to Azerbaijan’s war Crimes. It’s naive to expect legal consequences for the war crimes in this region as we are not white enough, not oil/other-rich enough to deserve proper attention, but we can’t let atrocities like this go unnoticed.
Armenian and other lives are not of a lesser value than Ukrainian lives, please speak up! With peace and solidarity,
WiB Armenia
Some readers may find this article disturbing. Viewer Discretion Is Advised.
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