07:32, 17 February 2026

120 Azerbaijani families returned to Agdam

Internally displaced persons prepare to return to Agdam. February 17, 2026. Photo: Report https://report.az/ru/vnutrennyaya-politika/v-gorod-agdam-vyehala-ocherednaya-gruppa-byvshih-vynuzhdennyh-pereselencev

Members of 120 Azerbaijani families who fled the Karabakh conflict returned to the city of Aghdam today.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," by December 24, 2025, 6,206 families (24,729 people) had returned to 31 settlements in the former Karabakh conflict zone.

Azerbaijanis from Karabakh settlements were forced to flee their homes after the start of the First Karabakh War. The return of IDPs began after Azerbaijan took control of these territories.

Today, 120 families (419 people) of former IDPs returned to the city of Aghdam, APA reports.

These families previously lived temporarily in various regions of the republic, primarily in dormitories, sanatoriums, and administrative buildings, Report writes.

Internally displaced persons living in a lyceum dormitory in Baku complained about living conditions. More than 30 families from the Zangelan and Jabrayil districts were resettled in the building. The "Caucasian Knot" published a photo report by Aziz Karimov, "A hostel for internally displaced persons from the Karabakh conflict zone in Baku."

Fazilya Novruzova said she dreamed of returning to her hometown. "At 23, I was forced to leave Aghdam. And now I'm returning with my children," the agency quotes her as saying.

We've been waiting for this day for 33 years.

"We've been waiting for this day for 33 years, and I'm overwhelmed with joy. Thank God this day has come, and we're returning to our native land," the agency quotes another internally displaced person, Jeyran Huseynova, who is returning to Aghdam today.

As a reminder, on September 19-20, 2023, Azerbaijan carried out large-scale military operations and took control of the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, which began a mass exodus of the Armenian population. By October 7, 2023, 100,632 internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Nagorno-Karabakh had arrived in Armenia, and by September 2024, only 14 Armenians remained in the region. The "Caucasian Knot" has prepared a report, "The Beginning and End of the Unrecognized Republic of Artsakh."

Azerbaijani IDPs complained about the difficulties of returning to Karabakh. In particular, they noted a shortage of jobs in Fuzuli. People are seeking opportunities to return to their homelands, but property issues in the territories under Azerbaijani control have not yet been resolved, the IDPs noted.

Azerbaijani analysts interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" indicated that simply providing housing to IDPs returning to their cities is not enough. Authorities must create jobs and build infrastructure, they stressed.

Translated automatically via Google translate from https://www.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/420875