After the hostilities in September 2023, all Armenians left Nagorno-Karabakh as soon as Azerbaijan unblocked the Lachin corridor. Tatev Mikayelyan, one of the residents of the village of Nerkin Sznek (Ashagi Yemishchan, as it is called by Azerbaijanis) tells the story of her family. Her relatives and fellow villagers fled Sznek through gorges and forests to escape. After a 9-month blockade, there was no gasoline in the village to leave by car.
Tatev also talks about distrust of Russian peacekeepers who have failed to fulfill their obligations to protect the population. He thinks that the more than 100,000 Armenians who left for Armenia after the war could return to their homeland only if their safety is guaranteed by an international contingent.
