Azerbaijan's president on Wednesday hailed the country's restoration to "full sovereignty" over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region as ethnic Armenian forces agreed to lay down their weapons. Authorities in the Armenian region declared that the local defence force will disarm and withdraw all weaponry under a Russia-mediated ceasefire following the latest bout of fighting in the decades-long separatist conflict. President Ilham Aliyev in a televised address hailed his soldiers, while offering the ethnic Armenians of the Nagorno-Karabakh region prospects of cooperation, reconciliation and joint development. "In just one day, Azerbaijan fulfilled all the tasks set as part of local anti-terrorist measures" and "restored its sovereignty", the president said, adding he now wished to integrate Karabakh's population and turn the region into "paradise". He said Azerbaijan had nothing against Karabakh's Armenian people – "they are our citizens" – but only against their "criminal" separatist leadership. His words appeared aimed at addressing allegations by Armenian leaders that Baku planned to "ethnically cleanse" Karabakh's 120,000-strong Armenian population amid decades of mistrust between the two nations. The Azerbaijan army on Tuesday launched an "anti-terrorist" operation, unleashing an artillery barrage and drone attacks against outnumbered and undersupplied pro-Armenian forces. Nagorno-Karabakh human rights ombudsman Gegham Stepanyan said at least 200 people, including 10 civilians, were killed and more than 400 others were wounded in the fighting. He said earlier that children were among the dead and wounded. Russia and America condemned the “bloodshed” and called for an “immediate” end to hostilities between Azerbaijan and Armenians in the contested region. French president Emmanuel Macron spoke with Mr Aliyev and "condemned Azerbaijan's decision to use force ... at the risk of worsening the humanitarian crisis" and "compromising ongoing efforts to achieve a fair and lasting peace", his office said. Russian peacekeepers in a statement on Thursday said they have taken in about 5,000 Karabakh residents after evacuating them from dangerous areas. Thousands of Armenians also gathered at the airport of the regional capital, Stepanakert, in a bid to flee the conflict. Armenian prime minister Nikol Pashinyan in an address to the nation said the fighting decreased following the truce, emphasizing that Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh are fully responsible for its residents’ security. "If peacekeepers have proposed a peace deal, it means that they completely and without any reservations accepted the responsibility of ensuring the security of Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians, and provide the conditions and the rights for them to live on their land and in their homes safely," he said, according to the Associated Press. Mr Pashinyan, who has previously recognised Azerbaijan's sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh, said Armenia wouldn't be drawn into the fighting. He said his government didn't take part in negotiating the deal, but "has taken note" of the decision made by the region's separatist authorities. Protesters rallied in the Armenian capital of Yerevan for a second straight day Wednesday, blocking streets and demanding that authorities defend Armenians in Karabakh. Azerbaijan's move to reclaim control over Nagorno-Karabakh raised concerns that a full-scale war in the region could resume between the two nations, which have been locked in a struggle over Nagorno-Karabakh since a separatist war there ended in 1994. During another war that lasted for six weeks in 2020, Azerbaijan reclaimed broad swaths of Nagorno-Karabakh and adjacent territories that were held for decades by Armenian forces. More than 6,700 people died in the fighting, which ended with a Russian-brokered peace agreement. Moscow deployed about 2,000 peacekeeping troops to the region. Read More Ceasefire agreed after Azerbaijan unleashes military strikes in Nagorno-Karabakh Why new fighting in Azerbaijan's troubled region may herald a new war Nagorno-Karabakh: Fears of full-scale war as Azerbaijan launches attack on Armenian positions The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

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Florida Governor Ron DeSantis pledged to restore the name of a military fort to the name of a Confederate general in North Carolina if he is elected president. The 2024 candidate for the Republican nomination for president made the remarks at the North Carolina Republican Party convention on Friday evening. “I also look forward to, as President, restoring the name of Fort Bragg to our great military base in Fayetteville, North Carolina,” he said during the Old North State Dinner in Greensboro. “It's an iconic name and iconic base, and we're not gonna let political correctness run amok.” Earlier this month, the Department of Defense announced that Fort Bragg, which was established in 1918, would be renamed Fort Liberty. The Pentagon began the initiative to rename military bases in 2020 in response to the Black Lives Matter protests after a white police officer killed George Floyd. Fort Bragg had been named for Braxton Bragg, who was a general for the Confederate States of America. He also served as a adviser to Confederate President Jefferson Davis. He also owned slaves and many in the South also despised him for abandoning Kentucky during the Civil War. Unlike other Confederate generals like Robert E Lee, he refused to surrender. Mr DeSantis is one of three presidential candidates speaking at the state convention. Former president Donald Trump and former vice president Mike Pence will also speak at the convention. The governor also claimed to have banned “Critical Race Theory,” a niche legal theory taught in law schools but that conservatives have used as a catch-all term to describe most teaching about racism. “We place renewed emphasis on American civics, about teaching kids about our Constitution and our Bill of Rights and about what it means to be an American,” he said. “Because no matter what avenue they take, they choose in life. they are all going to be citizens of our republic.” Mr DeSantis also took a subtle swipe at Mr Trump during his speech. “I tell you this leadership at the end of the day is not entertainment,” he said. “It's not brand building.” He also emphasised how he won re-election by double digits in November, while Republicans, many of whom Mr Trump endorsed, fell short in Senate races. “We had good stuff in some other states,” he said. “But we had huge disappointments across the board. We have 49 Republican US senators, we should have 55 Republican US Senators right now.” Mr DeSantis launched his campaign for president last month and is often polling second against Mr Trump but continues to lag by double digits in most surveys. The governor also touched on many themes that have also animated his campaign, such as fighting, “woke ideology,” which he called a form of “cultural Marxism.” “Woke represents a war on truth itself,” also briefly seeming to hit the former president, who said that Republicans who crow about the word “woke” do not know how to define it. Mr DeSantis also mentioned how he banned teaching about gender identity and sexual orientation in schools, most notably with his “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, which triggered a fight with Walt Disney. “And I know in Florida, they basically called the shots for many, many decades but there’s a new sheriff in town,” he said. Mr Trump and Mr Pence will address the North Carolina Republican Convention on Saturday. Read More DeSantis accused of changing pronunciation of his own name DeSantis news – latest: Florida governor most popular with rich Republicans as he defends move to fly migrants to California Fort Bragg drops Confederate namesake for Fort Liberty, part of US Army base rebranding Ivanka and Jared split over attending Trump 2024 launch – follow live Why was Donald Trump impeached twice during his first term? Four big lies Trump told during his 2024 presidential announcement