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31 years pass since Khojaly Genocide

26 February 2023 00:00 (UTC +04:00)

31 years have passed since Armenians committed genocide in Khojaly town of Azerbaijan, APA reports.

On February 25, 1992, Armenian armed forces attacked the city of Khojaly with the help of armored vehicles and military personnel of the 366th Motorized Rifle Regiment stationed in Khankendi since the USSR period.

2500 Khojaly residents, who remained in the encircled town, began to move towards Aghdam. But Armenians attacked them from ambush. As a result of the Khojaly genocide, which was a tragedy of a century, 613 civilians, as well as 63 children, 106 women, and 70 old people were killed atrociously, 8 families were completely annihilated, 25 children lost both parents, 130 children lost one parent, 487 were wounded (76 of them are children), some 1,275 innocent residents were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 people including 68 women and 26 children still remains unknown.

According to official estimates, the destruction and looting of the state and private property due to the occupation of Khojaly city by illegal Armenian armed groups caused $ 170 mln in damage to the property of the state and people of Azerbaijan.

A Monument to victims of the Khojaly genocide was erected in 1993 in the Khatai district of Baku.

In 1994, a resolution, “On 26 February- the Day of the Khojaly genocide,” was issued with the initiative of Heydar Aliyev at the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan. The document describes the causes of the tragedy and its perpetrators.

Since February 2008, the "Justice for Khojaly" campaign has been held on the initiative of Leyla Aliyeva, General Coordinator for Intercultural Dialogue of the Youth Forum of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC). The aim of the campaign is to inform the international community about the Khojaly tragedy, to give a moral and political assessment of the tragedy in the international arena, and to ensure its commemoration at the international level. The international coordination of the campaign is carried out through the website www.justiceforkhojaly.org.

The anniversary of the Khojaly genocide is sadly celebrated every year in Azerbaijan and many countries around the world. Every year, on February 26, Azerbaijani embassies and diaspora organizations organize commemorative ceremonies and conferences in the countries where they operate. At these events, photo stands reflecting the atrocities committed by Armenians in Khojaly, and documentaries and books reflecting the realities of the genocide are exhibited.

At present, the national legislatures of 18 countries, as well as 24 US states, as well as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the Organization of Turkic States have adopted numerous resolutions and decisions condemning the massacre of civilians in Khojaly and assessing it as an act of genocide and crimes against humanity.