After a lightning operation by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces to regain control of Nagorno-Karabakh, the flow of Armenians fleeing the region to Armenia quickly turned into a mass exodus. a He set himself up Republic The city of Artsak, located in the mountainous Nagorno-Karabakh region, between Armenia and Azerbaijan, will cease to exist after three decades of resistance. This reality led to the exodus of Armenians from the region for fear of “ethnic cleansing.”
The photos in this gallery were taken between September 24th and 26th by the photographer independent From Reuters: David Jahramanian, who made the trip with his family. lens Ghahramanian was arrested Cars, trucks, buses and tractors along the mountain road, often in two or three lanes of traffic, all in one direction. In one photo, a woman is seen on a crowded bus, looking through corroded windows.
Some westbound travelers came from the capital, Karabakh, known to Armenians as Stepanakert and to Azerbaijanis as Khankendi. Others came from nearby or further afield. They took everything they could fit inside or on the vehicles. Suitcases, boxes and even furniture – a set of chairs, in one case – were tied to the roof bars, exposed to the elements. If the car breaks down, the entire line stops while the driver and others try to fix it.
The 77-kilometre journey from Stepanakert to the Armenian border took Ghahramanyan and his family 24 hours. At first, they expected it would only take two hours. As the forced displacement began, Ghahramanian took a photo of his father shedding a tear on the side of the road.
As night fell on September 25, a group of tired travelers lit a fire to warm themselves in the cold night air.
