A UN-appointed independent human rights expert on Wednesday called on Azerbaijan to 'guarantee the rights of ethnic Armenians' in the Karabakh region and ensure that civilians who remain 'are respected and protected in line with its international obligations.'

'Azerbaijan must also promptly and independently investigate alleged or suspected violations of the right to life reported in the context of its latest military offensive...during which dozens of people, including peacekeepers, were killed,' said, Morris Tidball-Binz, the UN Human Rights Council-appointed Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions.