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epa10963960 President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces Ilham Aliyev (back), presides over a military parade marking the third anniversary of the Victory in the Patriotic War, in the former capital of Nagorno-Karabakh region, known to Armenians as Stepanakert, and in Azerbaijan as Khankendi, Azerbaijan, 08 November 2023. Azerbaijan on 19 September 2023 launched a brief military offensive in the contested region of Nagorno-Karabakh, a breakaway enclave home to some 120,000 ethnic Armenians. Following a ceasefire agreed on the following day, 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 was set up in the village of Kornidzor near the so-called Lachin corridor, the main route between Armenia and the breakaway region. Nagorno-Karabakh will cease to exist as a self-proclaimed state from 01 January 2024, the region's separatist leader, Samvel Shakhramanyan, announced on 28 September 2023, after signing a decree to dissolve all its institutions. EPA/STRINGER