After a 24-hour military offensive against ethnic-Armenian forces, Azerbaijan’s president announced that his country’s sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh had been restored.

Hours after Karabakh forces surrendered, Ilham Aliyev praised Azerbaijan’s army for its bravery and heroism.

Approximately 120,000 ethnic Armenians live in the South Caucasus enclave, which is recognized internationally as part of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan now intends to take full control of the breakaway region.

During an anti-terror operation on Tuesday, its military demanded that Karabakh’s forces raise a white flag and dissolve their “illegal regime”. After nine months of effective blockade, the ethnic Armenians gave in without any support from neighbouring Armenia.

At least 32 people, including seven civilians, were killed, and another 200 were injured, according to Armenian officials. According to a separatist Armenian human rights official, at least 200 people were killed and more than 400 wounded.

In an apparent violation of the ceasefire, Armenian officials accused Azerbaijan of opening fire on troops near the town of Sotk on the border between the two countries on Wednesday evening, but Azerbaijan denied the assertions.

On Wednesday, thousands of Armenians protested in Yerevan, the capital, to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.