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EMBASSY OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA: AZERBAIJANI DISTORTION OF THE EVENTS IN KHOJALY
PR Newswire
March 3, 2014 Monday 10:05 AM EST
WASHINGTON, March 3, 2014
Azerbaijani diplomacy and propaganda continues to mislead the
international community and Azerbaijani people by falsifying
the essence and the history of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and
the facts about the Khojaly events in particular. By distorting
the Khojaly events, Azerbaijani regime attempts to escape the
responsibility for the Armenian massacres in Sumgait (February,
1988), Kirovabad (November, 1988), Baku (January, 1990), Maragha
(April 1992) and against its own population in Khojaly. Azerbaijan
strives to portray itself as a victim, thus trying to prepare a moral
ground both domestically and internationally to unleash another war
against Nagorno-Karabakh.
Azerbaijan continues to reject international appeals, including
by the European Court of Human Rights, to openly debate about the
events in Khojaly. In that regard one can only ask why all who have
expressed points of views differing from Azerbaijani official version
of the events have been either killed, like journalist Mustafaev,
or imprisoned like journalist Fatullayev, or politically persecuted
like Ayaz Mutalibov, the first president of Azerbaijan?
In reality Khojaly village was one of the Azerbaijani strongholds in
the heart of Nagorno-Karabakh which for many months as Human Rights
Watch put it "pounded the capital of Nagorno Karabakh, Stepanakert,
and other Armenian towns and villages with shells and grenades. The
indiscriminate shelling and sniper shooting killed or maimed hundreds
of civilians, destroyed homes, hospitals and other objects that are
not legitimate military targets, and generally terrorized the civilian
population".[1] Therefore, suppressing the Azerbaijani fire had become
a matter of survival for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.
As Azerbaijani journalist Eynulla Fatullayev stated "And even several
days prior to the attack, the Armenians had been continuously warning
the population about the planned operation through loudspeakers
and suggesting that the civilians abandon the town and escape from
the encirclement through a humanitarian corridor. According to the
Khojaly refugees' own words, they had used this corridor and, indeed,
the Armenian soldiers positioned behind the corridor had not opened
fire on them"[2].
However, goes on Fatullayev "... part of the Khojaly inhabitants
had been fired upon by our own [Azerbaijani troops]... Whether it
was done intentionally or not is to be determined by investigators
... [They were killed] not by [some] mysterious [shooters], but by
provocateurs from the NFA[3] battalions ... [The corpses] had been
mutilated by our own ..."[4].
Ayaz Mutalibov, then the president of Azerbaijan blamed his political
opponents for killings in Khojaly. He stated in an interview that
"...the corridor, by which people could escape, had nonetheless been
left by the Armenians. So, why did they have to open fire? Especially
in the area around Aghdam, where there was sufficient force at
that time to get help to the people. As the Khojali inhabitants,
who narrowly escaped, say, it was all organized in order to have
grounds for my resignation. Some forces functioned for the effort to
discredit the president"[5].
The fact that Khojaly inhabitants felt victim of fierce domestic
political strife for power in Azerbaijan was confirmed also by then
Chairman of Azerbaijan's Supreme Council Karayev and his successor
Mamedov, Azerbaijani Human Rights Activist Yunusov and others.
Heydar Aliyev, then a presidential hopeful in Azerbaijan stated that
"...the bloodshed will profit us. We should not interfere in the
course of events"[6].
Mr. Fatullayev, the Chief Editor of the Azerbaijani newspaper "Realny
Azerbaijan" spent many years in prison for alleged defamation of
inhabitants of Khojaly. He appealed to the European court of Human
Rights, which ruled that the Azerbaijani government shall immediately
release Fatullayev. He was eventually released in 2011 and shortly
after confirmed to Radio Liberty that he has not changed his views
on Khojaly events and held "Azerbaijani fighters, not Armenians,
responsible for the 1992 killings" of Khojaly inhabitants[7].
The Azerbaijani aggressive rhetoric and distortion of history, backed
by the billions worth acquisition of offensive weaponry[8], bares
serious threat to the security and stability for the whole region
and thus should be adequately countered by the international community.
Embassy of the Republic of Armenia to the United States of America
[1]http://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/WR93/Hsw-07.htm#TopOfPage
[2]
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx#{"fulltext":["fatullayev"],"itemid":["001-98401"]}
[3] National Front of Azerbaijan. In 1992 an opposition militarized
party, which came to power after the Khojaly events.
[4] 'Case of Fatullayev v Azerbaijan' (Application
no. 40984/07) European Court of Human Rights
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx#{"fulltext":["fatullayev"],"itemid":["001-98401"]}
[5] 'Nezavisimaya Gazetta', 2 April 1992 (Russia)
[6] 'Bilik-Dunyasi Agency', April 1992 (Azerbaijan)
[7]http://www.rferl.org/content/fatullayev_says_im_still_here/24347732.html
[8] Azerbaijan made the largest real percentage increase (89 per cent)
in military spending in the world. "Background paper on SIPRI military
expenditure data, 2011"http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/milex
SOURCE Embassy of the Republic of Armenia to the United States
of America
PR Newswire
March 3, 2014 Monday 10:05 AM EST
WASHINGTON, March 3, 2014
Azerbaijani diplomacy and propaganda continues to mislead the
international community and Azerbaijani people by falsifying
the essence and the history of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict and
the facts about the Khojaly events in particular. By distorting
the Khojaly events, Azerbaijani regime attempts to escape the
responsibility for the Armenian massacres in Sumgait (February,
1988), Kirovabad (November, 1988), Baku (January, 1990), Maragha
(April 1992) and against its own population in Khojaly. Azerbaijan
strives to portray itself as a victim, thus trying to prepare a moral
ground both domestically and internationally to unleash another war
against Nagorno-Karabakh.
Azerbaijan continues to reject international appeals, including
by the European Court of Human Rights, to openly debate about the
events in Khojaly. In that regard one can only ask why all who have
expressed points of views differing from Azerbaijani official version
of the events have been either killed, like journalist Mustafaev,
or imprisoned like journalist Fatullayev, or politically persecuted
like Ayaz Mutalibov, the first president of Azerbaijan?
In reality Khojaly village was one of the Azerbaijani strongholds in
the heart of Nagorno-Karabakh which for many months as Human Rights
Watch put it "pounded the capital of Nagorno Karabakh, Stepanakert,
and other Armenian towns and villages with shells and grenades. The
indiscriminate shelling and sniper shooting killed or maimed hundreds
of civilians, destroyed homes, hospitals and other objects that are
not legitimate military targets, and generally terrorized the civilian
population".[1] Therefore, suppressing the Azerbaijani fire had become
a matter of survival for the people of Nagorno-Karabakh.
As Azerbaijani journalist Eynulla Fatullayev stated "And even several
days prior to the attack, the Armenians had been continuously warning
the population about the planned operation through loudspeakers
and suggesting that the civilians abandon the town and escape from
the encirclement through a humanitarian corridor. According to the
Khojaly refugees' own words, they had used this corridor and, indeed,
the Armenian soldiers positioned behind the corridor had not opened
fire on them"[2].
However, goes on Fatullayev "... part of the Khojaly inhabitants
had been fired upon by our own [Azerbaijani troops]... Whether it
was done intentionally or not is to be determined by investigators
... [They were killed] not by [some] mysterious [shooters], but by
provocateurs from the NFA[3] battalions ... [The corpses] had been
mutilated by our own ..."[4].
Ayaz Mutalibov, then the president of Azerbaijan blamed his political
opponents for killings in Khojaly. He stated in an interview that
"...the corridor, by which people could escape, had nonetheless been
left by the Armenians. So, why did they have to open fire? Especially
in the area around Aghdam, where there was sufficient force at
that time to get help to the people. As the Khojali inhabitants,
who narrowly escaped, say, it was all organized in order to have
grounds for my resignation. Some forces functioned for the effort to
discredit the president"[5].
The fact that Khojaly inhabitants felt victim of fierce domestic
political strife for power in Azerbaijan was confirmed also by then
Chairman of Azerbaijan's Supreme Council Karayev and his successor
Mamedov, Azerbaijani Human Rights Activist Yunusov and others.
Heydar Aliyev, then a presidential hopeful in Azerbaijan stated that
"...the bloodshed will profit us. We should not interfere in the
course of events"[6].
Mr. Fatullayev, the Chief Editor of the Azerbaijani newspaper "Realny
Azerbaijan" spent many years in prison for alleged defamation of
inhabitants of Khojaly. He appealed to the European court of Human
Rights, which ruled that the Azerbaijani government shall immediately
release Fatullayev. He was eventually released in 2011 and shortly
after confirmed to Radio Liberty that he has not changed his views
on Khojaly events and held "Azerbaijani fighters, not Armenians,
responsible for the 1992 killings" of Khojaly inhabitants[7].
The Azerbaijani aggressive rhetoric and distortion of history, backed
by the billions worth acquisition of offensive weaponry[8], bares
serious threat to the security and stability for the whole region
and thus should be adequately countered by the international community.
Embassy of the Republic of Armenia to the United States of America
[1]http://www.hrw.org/reports/1993/WR93/Hsw-07.htm#TopOfPage
[2]
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx#{"fulltext":["fatullayev"],"itemid":["001-98401"]}
[3] National Front of Azerbaijan. In 1992 an opposition militarized
party, which came to power after the Khojaly events.
[4] 'Case of Fatullayev v Azerbaijan' (Application
no. 40984/07) European Court of Human Rights
http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/sites/eng/pages/search.aspx#{"fulltext":["fatullayev"],"itemid":["001-98401"]}
[5] 'Nezavisimaya Gazetta', 2 April 1992 (Russia)
[6] 'Bilik-Dunyasi Agency', April 1992 (Azerbaijan)
[7]http://www.rferl.org/content/fatullayev_says_im_still_here/24347732.html
[8] Azerbaijan made the largest real percentage increase (89 per cent)
in military spending in the world. "Background paper on SIPRI military
expenditure data, 2011"http://www.sipri.org/research/armaments/milex
SOURCE Embassy of the Republic of Armenia to the United States
of America