By Fuad Muradov, Chairman of the State Committee on Work with Diaspora of the Republic of Azerbaijan
There is nothing more devastating than the trauma of war. The scars left by wars are obvious, and the consequences are profound. War grows into something different and takes on even more serious consequences when basic human decency is harassed, and the world is once again forced to document human brutalilty, mass murder, and ethnic cleansing; all in violation of many international laws on warfare. The town of Khojaly in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan may seem unfamiliar to some people. However Khojaly was the site of one of the most terrifying human tragedies in contemporary European history. The Khojaly genocide is the most terrible of the genocidal crimes perpetrated against the peaceful Azerbaijani civilians during the aggressive war of Armenia waged against Azerbaijan. Prior to this, during the occupation of the border villages of Azerbaijan, such as Baganis Ayrim in the Gazakh region, as well as the villages inhabited by Azerbaijanis in Nagorno-Karabakh, such as Imarat Garvand, Tugh, Selaketin, Akhullu, Khojavend, Jamilli, Nabilar, Meshali, Hasanabad, Karkijahan, Gaybaly, Malybeyli, Yukhari and Ashagi Kushchular, Garadaghly, part of the civilian population of these settlements was brutally murdered in accordanxe with premediated plan. It is sufficient to note that just several days before the Khojaly genocide – on February 17, 1992 – over 80 Azerbaijanis underwent massacre in the village of Garadaghly in the Khojavend region. Situated 10 kilometers southeast of Khankendi, at a strategic point between the Agdam-Shusha and Askeran-Khankendi roads, Khojaly, which housed the only airport in Nagorno-Karabakh, was completely surrounded by Armenian military forces since the second half of February. All attempts by civilians, both in groups and individually, to break out of the encirclement were thwarted.
On the night of February 25-26, 1992, Armenian armed forces, in blatant violation of all international legal norms, used heavy military equipment against the peaceful population of the besieged city of Khojaly, subjecting them to unprecedented brutality and barbarically leveling the city. On that day Azerbaijani civilians were attempting to evacuate the town of Khojaly in the freezing cold while coming under attack, and many were gunned down by the invading Armenian troops as they fled towards the safety of Azerbaijani lines. This brutal attack was not simply an accident of battle, it was part of Armenia’s deliberate policy of terror to intimidate Azerbaijani citizens into fleeing towns and villages of the region, allowing Armenia’s army to occupy Nagorno¬-Karabakh and other areas of Azerbaijan.
The Khojaly massacre was an unabashed campaign of ethnic cleansing, in uncertain terms. As a result of this horrific crime, which was not only against the Azerbaijani people but against all of humanity, 613 innocent Azerbaijani civilians were brutally killed due to their ethnical identity, including 63 children, 106 women, and 70 elderly individuals. Eight families were completely annihilated, 25 children lost both parents, and 130 children lost one parent. Additionally, 487 civilians were severely injured, and 1,275 people were taken hostage. The fate of 150 hostages, including 68 women and 26 children, remains unknown.
The nature and scale of the crimes committed in the town of Khojaly prove that this act of genocide fully complies with the definition expressed in the “Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide” adopted by Resolution 260 (III) of the UN General Assembly on December 9, 1948. A deliberate act of massive and merciless massacre was carried out with the intention of completely exterminating the people living in this area solely because they were Azerbaijanis. The frenzied executioners flayed people alive, mutilated various parts of their bodies, gouged out the eyes of babies, ripped open the bellies of pregnant women, buried or burned people alive, and mined some of the corpses. No mercy was shown to those who tried to escape from the burning town. Civilians were ambushed and brutally killed by Armenian soldiers on the roads and in the forests.
The organizers of the Khojaly genocide, a crime against humanity, were the political and state leadership of the Republic of Armenia at that time, headed by the then President Levon Ter-Petrosyan. The immediate perpetrators were units of the Armenian armed forces, Armenian terrorist groups in Nagorno-Karabakh headed by persons who later became the Presidents of Armenia Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan, as well as the personnel of the 366th Motorized Rifle Regiment of the former Soviet Army, stationed in the city of Khankendi. Serzh Sargsyan himself admitted to the killing of civilians in Khojaly in an interview for Thomas de Waal’s book “Black Garden”, stating: “Until Khojaly, the Azerbaijanis thought that we were people who could not raise our hands against the civilian population. We had to break that stereotype. And we did.”
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan, during his speech at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on June 23, 2004, responded to a question by the member of Azerbaijani Parliament Rafael Huseynov by stating that he was proud of his participation in the military operations that took place in and around Nagorno-Karabakh during 1992-1994.
In January 2025, a video of a meeting between the former President of Armenia, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, and members of the “Yerkrapa” terrorist organization from July 23, 1993, was released on the YouTube platform. In the video, the Armenian president:
1. Admits that Azerbaijanis were deliberately “cleansed” from Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia and presents this process as the “fulfillment of Armenians’ 600-year-old dreams.” According to the president, through this, Armenians have achieved the “national state” they had dreamed of for 600 years. This is, in fact, an admission of “ethnic cleansing.”
2. He admits in his own words that the migration of 300,000 Armenians living in Azerbaijan to Armenia was also a result of the Armenian national movement’s activities. The purpose of this migration was to solve the demographic problem in Armenia. In his speech, Ter-Petrosyan speaks with great hope that these 300,000 Armenians will quickly grow into a population of one million or one and a half million. This reveals that accusations such as “ethnic cleansing” and the “Sumgait massacre,” which have been used as pressure tools against Azerbaijan for over 30 years, are actually part of the Armenians’ cunning national state and Nagorno-Karabakh plans.
3. He admits that the strategy of forgetting the Nagorno-Karabakh issue through 20-30 years of negotiations and turning it into history is part of the Armenians’ expansion plans. It becomes clear that the OSCE Minsk Group and its leaders’ futile and inconclusive visits to the region have, in fact, served Armenian plans for decades.
4. At the end of his speech, he joyfully announces the capture of the city of Aghdam by Armenians, and this news is met with constant, loud applause from the “elite” of the Armenian nation.
By the decision of the Milli Majlis (National Assembly) of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated February 24, 1994, February 26 was declared Khojaly Genocide Day. Law enforcement agencies of Azerbaijan continue to take measures to identify those involved in the act of genocide in Khojaly and bring them to justice. Unfortunately, Interpol, as an international organization, has not arrested or extradited any of the organizers or perpetrators of the tragedy over the past 32 years. However, their names are known to everyone. The failure of the international community to ensure justice and the lack of a legal response to the Khojaly genocide was highlighted by President Ilham Aliyev in an interview with CNN Türk on August 14, 2021. “This is injustice. We have been living with this injustice for a long time, we have gotten used to it and are no longer surprised.” On the instructions of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, the Khojaly genocide is commemorated annually with large-scale events. In 2017, the 25th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide was also marked in Baku with another nationwide march. During the march, slogans such as “The world must recognize the Khojaly genocide!”, “Justice for Khojaly!”, “Do not forget Khojaly!”, “Down with Armenian fascism!”, “Khojaly – the genocide of the 20th century” and “The criminals will not go unpunished!” were displayed.
In order to raise awareness of the crimes against humanity committed in Khojaly in the international arena, the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, on the initiative of its Vice President Leyla Aliyeva, has been organizing the “Justice for Khojaly!” campaign, which has been expanding every year. As a result of systematic work to raise awareness of the world community about the Khojaly genocide, relevant documents of the Parliamentary Union of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, as well as the parliaments of Mexico, Pakistan, the Czech Republic, Peru, Colombia, Panama, Honduras, Sudan, Guatemala and Djibouti have confirmed that the massacres committed in Khojaly are acts of genocide. The parliaments of Romania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Jordan, Slovenia and Scotland, as well as the executive and legislative bodies of more than 20 US states have condemned the Khojaly tragedy, qualifying it as a massacre.
The Khojaly massacre has also not gone unnoticed by Israel. Israeli President Reuven Rivlin speaking to the United Nations General Assembly, had noted: “Is our struggle, the struggle of this Assembly, against genocide, effective enough? Was it effective enough then in Bosnia? Was it effective in preventing the killing in Khojaly?”
The campaign “Justice for Khojaly!”, implemented at the initiative of Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation Leyla Aliyeva, plays a significant role in the strategic activities of the Azerbaijani diaspora. Every year, on the anniversary of the Khojaly genocide, diaspora organizations hold various events, such as round tables, conferences, demonstrations, and also send appeals to international organizations, parliaments of leading countries, heads of state and government demanding recognition of the genocide. In 2019, a pan-European Karabakh rally was held on the Luxembourg Square in Brussels, the capital of the Kingdom of Belgium, dedicated to the 27th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide. In 2020, a pan-European Karabakh rally was held on the Pariser Platz near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Germany, on the 28th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide. In February 2022, a rally was organized in Washington, D.C., to mark the 30th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide, and in 2023, a pan-European Karabakh rally was held on the famous Heldenplatz in Vienna, Austria, to mark the 31st anniversary of the Khojaly genocide. In addition to Azerbaijanis, local residents and representatives of diasporas who are friendly towards Azerbaijan also took part in these events. The protesters emphasized that the Khojaly massacre corresponds to the category of genocide in line with UN resolutions and that 24 US states have recognized the Khojaly genocide. They conveyed that Azerbaijan, the world Azerbaijani community and the Turkic world demand a fair attitude towards Khojaly from the international community. The demand “Justice for Khojaly!” was repeatedly heard during these actions. In addition, within the framework of the project “History of Azerbaijan”, organized jointly by the Canadian media group ELTV and the Azerbaijani Center for Culture and Art “Veten”, a short documentary film was shot reflecting the Khojaly tragedy.
I am in belief that diaspora organizations must continue their efforts to ensure the international recognition of the Khojaly genocide. Diaspora activists should publish articles in the media of the countries they reside in, and Azerbaijani lawyers should explain to their societies that the Khojaly tragedy is an act of genocide. The world must not forget the Khojaly genocide. We demand justice for Khojaly.
