Azerbaijan launched a military operation in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh on Tuesday, prompting humanitarian concerns from international observers, including the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Nagorno-Karabakh is internationally recognized as a part of Azerbaijan, but it is also home to the Armenian-aligned breakaway state of Artsakh.

Azerbaijan accused Armenian forces of planting a landmine on a Nagorno-Karabakh road that allegedly killed two civilians on Tuesday. The Azerbaijani military launched “local antiterrorist activities” in response.  Meanwhile Azerbaijan’s president said in a statement that “for the antiterror measures to stop, the illegal Armenian military formations must raise the white flag, all the weapons must be handed over, and the illegal regime must be dissolved.”

Armenia alleged that Azerbaijan has been shelling civilian positions and explicitly denied that Armenian forces are present in Nagorno-Karabakh.

The ICRC noted that access to necessities and healthcare in the disputed region has already been depleted due to reignited tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia over the last few months. It called “on all military authorities to take the necessary measures to ensure civilian life and civilian infrastructure is respected and protected at all times, in line with their obligations under international humanitarian law.”

The European Union has  called for a ceasefire, and Azerbaijan has urged Armenian separatists in the breakaway region of Karabakh to lay down their arms, offering talks with Armenian representatives in the town of Yevlakh if they surrendered.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken labeled Azerbaijan’s actions “unacceptable” and called for dialogue in lieu of hostilities.

Earlier this month, former International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo released a legal opinion claiming that genocide is under way against ethnic Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh. UK barrister Rodney Dixon, reviewed Ocampo’s analysis at the request of the Government of Azerbaijan and produced a legal assessment saying “the international community should focus on mediation efforts, not genocide claims.”