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SUMGAIT GENOCIDE THAT SHOOK ARMENIAN PEOPLE
Panorama.am
18:09 27/02/2009
Sumgait shook the Armenian people. It stunned with its brutality and
with its cynicism. History will undoubtedly pass its verdict on the
Sumgait genocide.
Massacres of Armenians in Sumgait (a city located near Baku) took place
in broad daylight, witnessed by numerous gapers and passers by. The
peak of the atrocities committed by Azeri perpetrators occurred on 27 -
29 February 1988. The events were preceded by a wave of anti-Armenian
statements and rallies that swept over Azerbaijan in February 1988.
Almost the entire area of a city with population of 250 thousand
became a site of unhindered mass pogroms. The perpetrators who broke
in Armenian households followed lists containing names of those who
lived there. They were armed with iron rods (pieces of armature),
stones, axes, knives, bottles and canisters full of benzene. As
for the quantity of the perpetrators, according to witnesses, some
apartments were raided by groups of 50 - 80 persons. Similar crowds
(up to 100 people) stormed the streets.
There were dozens of casualties (according to final but still
incomplete data, the number of murdered Armenians amounted at least 53
persons), mostly burnt alive after assaults and torture. Hundreds of
innocent people wounded and disabled. Many women, including adolescent
girls, raped. Over 200 apartments raided dozens of cars burnt, numerous
shops and workshops looted. Thousands of refugees. This is the story of
Sumgait that marked the first entry in a long list of crimes against
humanity and ethnic cleansings of the end of the 20th century.
Various political parties, human rights organizations, social and
political celebrities, even parliaments of some countries severely
criticized this disgraceful incident and spoke up for protection
of Armenians.
Panorama.am
18:09 27/02/2009
Sumgait shook the Armenian people. It stunned with its brutality and
with its cynicism. History will undoubtedly pass its verdict on the
Sumgait genocide.
Massacres of Armenians in Sumgait (a city located near Baku) took place
in broad daylight, witnessed by numerous gapers and passers by. The
peak of the atrocities committed by Azeri perpetrators occurred on 27 -
29 February 1988. The events were preceded by a wave of anti-Armenian
statements and rallies that swept over Azerbaijan in February 1988.
Almost the entire area of a city with population of 250 thousand
became a site of unhindered mass pogroms. The perpetrators who broke
in Armenian households followed lists containing names of those who
lived there. They were armed with iron rods (pieces of armature),
stones, axes, knives, bottles and canisters full of benzene. As
for the quantity of the perpetrators, according to witnesses, some
apartments were raided by groups of 50 - 80 persons. Similar crowds
(up to 100 people) stormed the streets.
There were dozens of casualties (according to final but still
incomplete data, the number of murdered Armenians amounted at least 53
persons), mostly burnt alive after assaults and torture. Hundreds of
innocent people wounded and disabled. Many women, including adolescent
girls, raped. Over 200 apartments raided dozens of cars burnt, numerous
shops and workshops looted. Thousands of refugees. This is the story of
Sumgait that marked the first entry in a long list of crimes against
humanity and ethnic cleansings of the end of the 20th century.
Various political parties, human rights organizations, social and
political celebrities, even parliaments of some countries severely
criticized this disgraceful incident and spoke up for protection
of Armenians.