|
Armenians pray during the Divine Liturgy at the Open Altar of St. Trdat in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Armenia, 01 October 2023. Under the chairmanship of His Holiness Garegin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, the day of 01 October was declared the National Day of Prayer for Artsakh, on the occasion of which a special prayer service was held in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin and in all churches of Armenia and the Diaspora. Azerbaijan on 19 September 2023 launched a brief military offensive on the contested region of Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway enclave that is home to some 120,000 ethnic Armenians. Following a ceasefire agreed on 20 September 2023, Azerbaijan opened all checkpoints with Armenia for the unimpeded exit of civilians from the disputed territory. The Armenian government announced the evacuation of more than 100,000 local residents from Nagorno-Karabakh, and a humanitarian center has been set up in the village of Kornidzor near the so-called Lachin corridor, the main route between Armenia and the breakaway region. (Photo by Anatoly Maltsev/EPA/EFE)
|
