World Court to hear Armenia's demand for Azerbaijan withdrawal

THE HAGUE: The World Court will sit next Thursday to hear Armenia's demand for an emergency order to Azerbaijan to withdraw all its troops from civilian establishments in Nagorno-Karabakh, the court said on Friday.

It is the fourth time the World Court, formally known as the International Court of Justice, will hear a request for emergency measures as part of two competing legal disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan. Both states accuse each other before the ICJ of violating a U.N. anti-discrimination treaty.

In February, the United Nations' highest court ordered Azerbaijan to ensure free movement through the Lachin corridor to and from Nagorno-Karabakh after already ordering both sides in December last year of refraining from any actions that would aggravate their dispute.

Last month, Azerbaijan launched a military operation that caused more than 100,000 ethnic Armenians to flee Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenia has accused Azerbaijan of "ethnic cleansing" in Karabakh, which Baku denies.

The World Court in The Hague is the U.N. court for resolving disputes between countries. Its rulings are binding, but it has no direct means of enforcing them.