Turkish Forces Claim Road in Askeran's Parukh Village, Cutting Off Main Access

The village of Parukh in the Askeran region of Artsakh has lost its main road access following the handover of the Agdam region to Azerbaijan. In a conversation with NEWS.am, Parukh's village head Vardan Mikayelyan stated, "The Turks have come, stopped on the road, and say it's theirs. During the Soviet era, their territory was beneath the road, not the road itself, but now they have occupied the top as well as the road; they have blocked it. They arrived the very day Agdam was handed over and closed it off."

To reach Parukh, villagers now have to use an alternative route through the forest, which is in a damaged state. Mikayelyan added, "We’ve made a slight improvement, but not every vehicle can pass through; it’s muddy. We are now bringing in machinery to repair it."

Parukh is currently located about 500 meters from the Azerbaijani border. The community head mentioned that villagers are worried about their safety, which is why they have not returned since the war. "We had 82 residents; now only 3 people live here—one from each family—mainly to look after the livestock," noted Mikayelyan.