Pro-Armenian demonstrators shut down the 101 Freeway near downtown Los Angeles late Tuesday night to highlight the ongoing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan that some fear could escalate into a war.
The protest occurred around 10:30 p.m.
A large group of demonstrators were seen waving Armenian flags along with a large sign that read, “Joe Biden Don’t Ignore Us.”
Sky5 video showed the crowd stopped outside on the freeway while their vehicles were parked in a cluster. Traffic was backed up for miles as California Highway Patrol officers directed drivers.
Azerbaijan’s launch of reportedly intense artillery firing in the Nagorno-Karabakh region on Tuesday raised fears that another full-scale conflict with Armenia could be underway, less than three years after a war that killed more than 6,000 people, according to the Associated Press.
A SigAlert was issued for the northbound and southbound lanes of the 101 Freeway at Glendale Boulevard. By 11 p.m., two northbound lanes were reopened.
Azerbaijan and Armenian forces reached a cease-fire agreement Wednesday to end two days of fighting in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region that has been a flashpoint for decades, officials on both sides said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.