JAMnews' Thursday selection of headlines from the Caucasus, November 26, 2020

Important

• The French Senate has almost unanimously adopted a resolution “On the need to recognize Nagorno-Karabakh”. Among other things, it calls on the French government to provide large-scale support to the civilian population of Karabakh, and to make every effort to resume negotiations to ensure a return to the borders in the region as they were drawn by the first Karabakh war in the early 199Os.

The document has no legal force and is advisory in nature, leaving the final word to the French government.

• On November 25, the Azerbaijani army entered the Kalbajar district in the zone of the Karabakh conflict, soon after the Armenian armed forces had pulled out of it in accordance with the trilateral truce agreement signed earlier in the month.

Who is now deployed where in the region, how the Armenian military have been withdrawing and what is happening to its Armenian civilians – read this explainer by JAMnews to find out.

• An Azerbaijani army officer died in a mine explosion in Azerbaijan’s Terter region while searching for the bodies of those killed during the recent hostilities. A Russian peacekeeper and four employees of the ministry of emergency situations of Nagorno-Karabakh were wounded.

• Guarantees must be created to ensure a safe return of Armenian residents to their villages in Karabakh which have, as a result of the war, come under the control of Azerbaijan, Armenia’s prime minister Nikol Pashinyan told Russia’s TASS news agency the other day. Here are some other interesting takeaways from the interview

In the meantime:

More than 11,000 people have returned to their homes in Nagorno-Karabakh

Yerevan city hall says it will allocate funds to restore capital of Nagorno-Karabakh

Armenian opposition member has gone on hunger strike demanding resignation of PM Pashinyan

Azerbaijan has put former Armenian minister of defense on wanted list

Former US Ambassador to Azerbaijan calls presence of Turkish troops in the region “enormous geopolitical balance”

Russian humanitarian cargo delivered to Karabakh for first time through Azerbaijan

Also interesting

• The main producer of Georgian electricity, the Inguri hydroelectric power station, is going to be shut down for repairs from January 15-20 to mid-May, according to the management of the station. Experts say that this will not only put a huge strain on the Georgian energy system, but will also exacerbate the already severe energy crisis in Abkhazia for whom the plant is effectively the only source of electricity today.

• New York Times has named Georgia one of the world’s Covid-19 pandemic hotspots. Indeed, over 3,000 new infections have been reported here daily, which the authorities say is the result of the thousands-strong street rallies organized by the opposition in protest against the results of the October 31 parliamentary election.

More on Georgia

EU delegation calls on Georgian opposition MPs to end their boycott and start working in the new parliament

High-profile killing case of Georgia’s Pankisi Valley teenager scrutinized by ECHR   

Poster dedicated to memory of transgender individuals burned in Tbilisi

Stories

We hear little about how the pandemic has affected children, but it certainly has, and in some mighty ways too. They’ve been stuck at home for months, unable to communicate with their friends and to properly benefit from school activities. In this photo story from Georgia, several kids share how their lives have changed and what worries them the most nowadays.

And, finally, Covid-19 tally

Armenia: 129,085 confirmed cases, including 2,040 fatalities, and 100,913recoveries

Georgia: 114,889 confirmed cases, including 1,085 deaths and 95,581 recoveries

Azerbaijan: 102,396 cases. 1,224 people have died, 66,963 others recovered