Azerbaijani authorities threaten to cancel benefits for refugees

Today, Fuad Guseinov, the deputy chairman of the Azerbaijan State Committee for Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs), has announced that forced migrants must agree to return to Nagorno-Karabakh, otherwise they will be deprived of their status.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that only a part of the hundreds of thousands of forced migrants in Azerbaijan expect to return to their native towns and villages in Nagorno-Karabakh. Most of them – 315,000 IDPs – received apartments and houses from the state even before the autumn escalation of the conflict, and not all of the forced migrants are ready to change their way of life and quit their jobs.

The forced migrants who refuse to return to the liberated territories will lose their status and corresponding benefits, announces Fuad Guseinov, the deputy chairman of the Azerbaijan State Committee for Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons. He has emphasized that all conditions for life and work will be created on the returned lands. "The IDPs must give a sincere answer concerning their return," stated Fuad Guseinov as quoted today by the "Haqqin".

"The status of the IDPs who do not want to go to the lands liberated from the occupation will be considered lost. As a result, they will lose all the benefits intended for IDPs and persons equated to them," the "Day" quotes today Fuad Guseinov as saying.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 8, 2021 at 02:30 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.