By: Raja Aamir Mahmood Bhatti
Azerbaijanis around the world commemorates one of the most tragic days in their history on 26 February of each year. 29th years has passed since hundreds of innocent men, women and children from the town of Khojaly in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan were slaughtered by Armenian troops.
The Khojaly massacre at the hands of Armenian troops stands as one of history’s most chillingly brutal military acts against unarmed civilians. Over the night from 25 to 26 February 1992, the Khojaly city of Azerbaijan was savagely destroyed by the Armenian armed forces, the defenders and residents of Khojaly were massacred. Hundreds of peaceful residents, the children, women, elderly, whole families were annihilated, and their corpses were disfigured by unprecedented tortures. Such massacre committed in the eyes of world community at the end of XX century, was, for its cruelty and brutality, not only against the Azerbaijan people, but also in the whole, against the humanity.
The Khojaly Massacre is seen as one of the bloodiest incidents committed by Armenian forces against Azerbaijani civilians for control of the now-occupied Upper Karabakh region. The two-hour Armenian offensive killed 613 Azerbaijani citizens – including 106 women, 63 children and 70 elderly – and critically injured 487 others, according to Azerbaijani figures. Also, 150 of the 1,275 Azerbaijanis that the Armenians captured during the massacre remain missing. In the massacre, eight families were completely wiped out, while 130 children lost one parent, and 25 children lost both parents.
Today, it is not secret for anybody that the Khojaly tragedy was a bloody page of the genocide and ethnic cleansing policy pursued along hundreds years by militant Armenian nationalists against the Turkic and Azerbaijan peoples. This policy conducted in separate periods for interests of numerous states – by all admitted and non-admitted means – in political, economic, military, terror and ideological ways was continued, our compatriots were oppressed, the historical Azerbaijan lands were occupied by Armenians and seized.
Only after national leader Heydar Aliyev returned to power, the Khojaly tragedy was politically and legally assessed with impressive measures taken to bring the truth on the genocide to the world’s countries’ and international community’s notice.
The Government of Azerbaijan works purposefully and consistently to raise the world community’s awareness about the crimes committed by Armenian chauvinist and nationalists against Azerbaijanis, in particular, about the Khojaly genocide, and to have this tragedy recognized as the genocide
The Azerbaijan state and society are experiencing the period of construction and development. Azerbaijan achieved leading positions in the world in the terms of economic growth rates. Azerbaijan is the main stakeholder and initiator of the regional and international energy-communication projects. The state program on the socio-economic development of regions and other social and infrastructure projects are being successfully realized. Azerbaijan state’s economic and military capacity and international prestige increases every day with our people’s patriotism and national self-consciousness also strengthening. A number of international organizations, heads of influential states, their parliaments recognize Armenia as the aggressive state.
On this sorrowful day, we pay tribute to Khojaly shahids and heroes, and express our condolences to their relatives and all people of Azerbaijan. May Allah rest their souls in peace?
