MASSACRE OF ARTSAKH ARMENIANS FEARED FOR THIS SPRING

Peter Bahlawanian has been documenting the desperate plight of indigenous Armenians living in Artskah—also known as Nagorno Karabakh—that is located in Azerbaijan. In this urgent, comprehensive interview, he talks about the escalating attacks on these Christian Armenians by Muslim Azerbaijanis. Several Azerbaijani attacks on Artsakh last year and an Azerbaijani blockade of the Lachin corridor connecting Artsakh to Armenia that stopped the flow of vital goods and services into Artsakh for months have been characterized as ethnic cleansing. Now, Azerbaijani troops positioned atop mountains ringing Artsakh villages below, have raised fears that a spring massacre is in the offing. Bahlawanian, who since 2020 has been recording the devastating aftermath of attacks on the Artsakh Armenians in a YouTube series and documentary, both titled “The Desire to Live,” says April 2023 would be the most likely time for the massacre as April corresponds with the month that the 1915 Armenian Genocide claiming 1.5 million lives was launched. Bahlawanian discusses the geopolitical and commercial interests—including the personal commercial interests of political leaders, have kept this situation and the 1915 Armenian Genocide largely under wraps. Bahlawanian sounds the alarm in an attempt to focus the world’s attention on the Artsakh Armenians before it is too late. Film Director Mariam Avetisyan continues to document the lives of Artsakh Armenians for “The Desire to Live” on YouTube. The series can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/c/mariamavetisyan