Christian women and children are hiding in the basement of a church, hoping and praying that the massive stone building above will keep them safe. But the aerial bombardment is so heavy that many in the basement are wounded.
This was the scene on 7 October in Shushi, a town in Nagorno-Karabakh. The enclave of “mountainous Karabakh” lies in the territory of Muslim-majority Azerbaijan, but its population is Armenian Christians. They have been under attack from combined Muslim forces since 27 September.
“Islamism is once again trying to eliminate the biggest obstacle to the establishment of the Great Turan Caliphate – the first Christian people,” wrote an Armenian pastor to Barnabas Fund . He was recalling the terrible Armenian Genocide of a century ago and the long history of Armenian Christianity, dating back to about 301 AD.
Who will feed them?
Thousands of Armenian Christians, especially women, children and elderly, have fled to neighbouring Armenia. But this desperately poor country, afflicted with Covid-19, struggles to provide for the new arrivals. Many people have opened their homes to give shelter to acquaintances or strangers, but who will provide food for the refugees? And what about warm clothes for the children, with winter approaching in a country where temperatures will drop well below freezing?
Oxygen for Covid-19 patients
The many wounded from Nagorno-Karabakh are filling the hospitals of Armenia, forcing Covid-19 patients to be cared for at home. Barnabas Fund has been asked to provide oxygen concentrators to help very sick Covid-19 patients being nursed at home.
Please help Armenian refugees today
Armenian Christians in Armenia are standing by to deliver food and clothing. But they need your help to provide these items.
Please give now to provide food aid and warm children’s clothes for families who have fled from Nagorno-Karabakh. Just £45 ($60; €50) could provide food for one family. And £450 ($600; €500) could purchase one oxygen concentrator.
