The Wall Street Journal prepares report from Karabakh

Some 30 years on from the war that saw Armenian forces drive hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis from their homes in and around the conflict-torn Nagorno-Karabakh, many hope they can soon return after Azerbaijan regained its lands in a counteroffensive last fall, Report informs, referring to The Wall Street Journal.

"I thank God for allowing me the possibility of returning to die on my own land," said Sayali Pashayeva, 74 years old, on her first visit back to Agdam, once home to her family and 40,000 other people.

Her son and daughter unfurled a red rug from the trunk, a gift for the local mosque, the only building left standing there.

The article also notes that the process of returning internally displaced persons will be long since the liberated lands need to be fully restored.

Land mines and unexploded ordnance still pepper the landscape. With rail and airport infrastructure long destroyed, the only way in is by road, making it harder to restore public services and rebuild shattered towns.