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Khojaly genocide – the gravest crime against humanity

Baku, February 21, AZERTAC
Khojaly genocide, which was committed by the Armenians in the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly on the night of 25-26 February 1992, is considered one of the gravest crimes against humanity in the late 20th century.
On the night of 25-26 February 1992, the Armenian armed forces surrounded Khojaly with tanks and armored carriers and infantry units. Armed with state-of-the-art weapons, the Armenians razed Khojaly to the ground. The town was destroyed and burned by military hardware, and its civilians were killed with extreme cruelty. Most of them were beheaded, had their eyes gouged out, skinned, and burned alive.
Official figures prove that as a result of the genocidal act in Khojaly 613 people were killed, including 106 women, 63 children and 70 elderly. As a result of the massacre, 8 families were completely annihilated, 56 people were tortured to death, 27 families had only one surviving member, 25 children lost both parents, 130 children lost one parent, 230 families lost the breadwinner, 487 people became disabled, including 76 minors, 1,275 people were taken hostage, 1,165 people were released from captivity, fate of 150 people is still unknown.
By committing genocide in Khojaly with extreme cruelty and torture, the Armenians wanted to wipe out the ancient settlements of the Azerbaijanis because being an ancient land, Khojaly differed from other areas with its historic and cultural monuments. With the population of more than 7,000 Azerbaijanis, Khojaly was the largest and ancient residential area (926 square km) surrounded by villages inhabited by the Armenians. The ancient monuments in the town had survived to modern time.
When the Armenian armed forces massacred innocent people in Khojaly helped by the Soviet Union`s 366th motor rifle regiment in February 1992, in order to cover their tracks, they resorted to extreme brutality, destroying Khojaly monuments, which had been of unique importance to both the people of Azerbaijan and entire humanity.
Khojaly does not differ from horrific tragedies of Katyn, Lidice, Oradour-sur-Glane, Holocaust, Songmy, Rwanda and Srebrenica, which are etched on the minds of people forever. These atrocities went down in the history of wars as genocides of civilians that shook the world.

 

Xocalı faciəsi 2019-02-21 13:47:00