Over 5,500 forcibly displaced individuals from Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) have been granted Armenian citizenship, according to the Migration and Citizenship Service of Armenia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs, reports Sputnik Armenia.
“As of December 25, 6,724 displaced persons from Nagorno-Karabakh have applied for Armenian citizenship. Of these, 5,510 have already received citizenship by decree of the President of Armenia,” the Migration Service stated.
In the past month alone, the number of refugees granted citizenship has risen by approximately 1,100, marking a significant increase compared to November 28, when 6,338 Artsakh residents had applied for Armenian citizenship, and 4,394 had already received it.
The statistics, however, do not include minors, as children under the age of 18 are automatically granted citizenship alongside their parents.
Since September 2023, 115,365 individuals have been forcibly displaced from Artsakh to Armenia. The majority have settled in the Kotayk Province (20,331 individuals), followed by Ararat Province (14,743 individuals) and Armavir Province (10,416 individuals).
These events are part of a broader humanitarian crisis caused by Azerbaijan’s military aggression and ethnic cleansing. Between 2020 and 2023, over 150,000 Armenians were forcibly displaced from Artsakh to Armenia. The crisis began with the 44-day war in 2020, during which Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military assault on Artsakh, occupying half of its territory. It escalated further in 2023 with a near nine-month blockade of Artsakh, followed by renewed military aggression, ethnic cleansing, and the full occupation of Artsakh by Azerbaijan.
