Statement issued on 3 March 1997 by the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs(Khojaly events)

From UN site
     The Azerbaijani statement of 22 February 1997, with regard
to what they call the Khojalu event, is the most cynical and
vicious statement ever made by Azerbaijan.

     Azerbaijan refers shamelessly to a 1992 military event, where,
according to then-Azerbaijani President Mutalibov, the responsibility
for the slaughter of the civilian population of the mostly Azeri city
of Khojalu near the capital Stepanakert of Nagorny Karabakh fully
falls on the Azeri opposition group, the Azerbaijani National Front.

     In the days following the event, President Mutalibov, in an
interview with Czech journalist Dana Mazalova published in the 2 April
1992 issue of the Russian newspaper Nizavisimaya Gazeta, said that the
militia of the Azerbaijani National Front actively obstructed and
actually prevented the exodus of the local population through the
mountain passages specifically left open by Karabakh Armenians to
facilitate the flight of the civilian population.

Responsibility for the tragic loss of civilian life on February 26-27, 1992 on the outskirts of Agdam, territory fully controlled by Azeri forces, lies with the political and military leadership of Azerbaijan.

Events on the territory controlled by Azerbaijan,
7 miles from Khojaly, after the Khojaly operation was over

When the military operation began in Khojaly, a large group of civilians and armed military personnel from Khojaly used the provided humanitarian corridor to exit the battlefield and began moving in the direction of the Azeri- controlled Agdam. Near Nakhichevanik village of Karabakh (outside of the provided corridor), the group provoked a gun battle with the defenders of Nakhichevanik, which resulted in numerous death on both sides. On February 28 and early March 1992, in the area then fully controlled by Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani and Turkish journalists videotaped images of the hundreds of killed and, during the second video shooting session, also mutilated bodies.

 

Since then, official Baku has falsified the events and used the human tragedy to persistently fan anti-Armenian hysteria to demonize the Armenian people in the eyes of the Azeris and the international community. It used the images to incite anti-Armenian sentiment and intolerance, which resulted in murders and calls from Azeris to wipe out Armenians as an ethnic group.

Conclusion

Responsibility for the tragic loss of civilian life on February 26-27, 1992 on the outskirts of Agdam, territory fully controlled by Azeri forces, lies with the political and military leadership of Azerbaijan.

First, the Azeri leadership used the territory of Khojaly for indiscriminate artillery attacks on civilian targets, thus turning the town into a legitimate military target for NKR Self-Defense Forces.

Second, the Azeri leadership intentionally prevented the civilian population from leaving the militarized village.

Third, the Azeri leadership failed to safely relocate civilians from Khojaly after public warnings of upcoming military operation, although it had many opportunities to do so.

Fourth, retreating Azeri forces provoked an exchange of fire with NKR Self-Defense Forces some five miles from Khojaly, which resulted in losses on both sides.

Fifth, those who had continued, full access to the site of reported close-range, mass killing are responsible for it. The reported killing of hundreds of civilians with incidences of barbaric mutilation of bodies took place near Agdam (some seven miles from Khojaly), on the territory controlled by Azeri forces. Free access to the site by Azeri and Turkish journalists is clear evidence to that end.

THE TRUTH ABOUT THE EVENTS IN KHOJALY

Evidence from Azerbaijani sources

For nine years after the events in Khojaly official Baku has been obstinately fanning anti-Armenian hysteria with the aim of falsifying real events and discrediting the Armenian people in the eyes of the international community.

The events in Khojaly, which led to the death of civilians, were the results solely of political intrigues and a struggle for power in Azerbaijan.

The real reasons are most convincingly reflected in the accounts of Azerbaijanis themselves – as participants in and eyewitnesses of what happened – as well as of those who know the whole inside story of the events in Baku.

According to Azerbaijani journalist M. Safarogly, “Khojaly occupied an important strategic position. The loss of Khojaly was a political fiasco for Mutalibov”. 1

Khojaly, along with Shushi and Agdam, was one of the main strongholds from which Stepanakert, the capital of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, was shelled continuously and mercilessly for three winter months using artillery and missiles and launchers for targeting cities.

The extract from the interview of President of Azerbaijan A. Mutalibov to Czech journalist Dana Mazalova.

“I am a humanist in my soul,” says about himself former president of Azerbaijan. D. Mazalova – What you think about the events in Khojalu, after which you resigned. The bodies of Khojalu people were found not far from Aghdam. Someone shot to the legs at first, in order not to allow fleeing. Then they were killed by ax. In February 29 my colleagues had taken pictures of them. During the new recording in March 2 these bodies were scalped. Very strange game, hmm…?

“As the survived Khojalu dwellers speak, all of that was organized to have a reason for my resignation. I do not think, that the Armenians, who have very precise and professional approach to similar situations, could allow Azerbaijanis to have documents denouncing them in fascist actions. It is possible to assume, that someone was interested in showing these shots later on the session of the Supreme Soviet and to blame me in all those things.”

If I declare that that the culprits are from Azerbaijani opposition they will say that I discredit them. But the important thing is that the corridor, to enable people to flee, was left by Armenians. And why for to shoot then? Especially on the territory close to Aghdam, where at that moment enough forces were deployed to come and help people. Or simply made an agreement to withdraw people. We practiced this all the time.

They were saying me all the time that Khojalu people stay firmly and they need armament, men force and food. I ordered to do so helicopter pilots. But pilots, as I was explained, rejected to fly there, since they lacked sets to escape from stingers (At the time of interview Armenian forces of Self Defense had no any anti aircraft weapons, including Stingers, – H. D., L. M.-Sh.)

So a week had passed. There, Aghdam contingent was deployed near, which was obliged always to follow the developments. When military vehicles surrounded Khojalu, they should evacuate population. Before that the similar order I gave on Shushi: men staying, women and children to be evacuated. This is the rule of war too: they should be saved. My behavior was objective and clear: I gave such orders, but why they did not implement them, it is not clear for me.

Conclusion on Khojaly events

The state propaganda of Republic of Azerbaijan having taken the thesis about the “Azerbaijani Genocide” implemented by Armenians in Khojalu up to this day continues to insist on the version of what happened from a biased point of view relevant to its interpretation.

Most probably, this way the Azerbaijani authorities tried to erase from the memory humanity the bloody Armenian pogroms in Sumgait (February 1988) and in Baku (January 1990) as well as the mass killings of Armenians in Maragha and Khramorth villages in summer 1992. On the other hand Baku tries to use accusations to address the Armenians as one more «weighty» proof of its ambitious demands towards Armenian territories, which are justified neither legally, nor historically.

However, the more important thing is that authorities of modern Azerbaijan are trying to forcibly attach the intolerable burden of genocidal psychology to its own people. Imposing of feeling of genocide and its subsequent politization is a not less heavy crime before the Azerbaijanis. The atmosphere of revanchism cultivating among Azerbaijani society is aimed to play down social hardships and dissatisfaction of Azerbaijanis.

No doubt that during the time bitter truth about massacre of Khojalu civilians will be known to the world. Then neither the former Azerbaijani authorities and their foreign protectors, nor the current authorities cannot justify themselves for this crime and especially before their OWN PEOPLE

9. THE TOTAL NUMBER OF CASUALTIES

The number of victims, wounded and disappeared persons from Khojalu brought by official Baku are confusing. Let’s follow the information sources on this matter. Official Baku, contrary to traditions of the Azerbaijan propaganda, tried to keep silent about the developments in the initial stage to save the authority of President Mutalibov.

Logically, Armenian traces in this tragedy could serve as a convenient occasion “to wash off” from Azerbaijan the shameful facts of Armenian pogroms in 1988 in Sumgait and in Baku in 1990, when, according to the official Soviet data, more than 300 Armenians were tortured and killed.

After a long pause the Speaker of parliament of Azerbaijan Elmira Kafarova declared, that the attack of the Armenian armed forces on Khojalu had been repulsed, and that only two Azerbaijani soldiers had been killed.⁵⁹

After some silence the Minister of Interior of Azerbaijan T. Kerimov informed “Interfax” news agency the following figures: 100 killed, 250 wounded and about 300 missing.⁶⁰

“… According to the eyewitnesses, for many of them, February 26 became the last day in their life … In searches of save heaven women, children and old men moved to Agdam. But on the way to the Armenian village of Nakhichavanik they were caught by bullets. The people died, their bodies remained on the place of another tragedy … The Aghdam hospital was overflowed: the number of patients from Khudjalu only made almost 120”.⁶¹

In the first week of March Western media reported about thousands of killed civilians, mainly getting the inofrmation from the Azerbaijani and Turkish mass media.⁶²

THE CAUSES OF CASUALTIES AMONG CIVILIANS IN KHOJALY

Part 8.

The armed soldiers of the Khojalu defense forces were running away from the village together with the civilian population. On the approaches to the Armenian village of Nakhijevanik they run on Armenian villagers’ self-defense positions. As a result of the fighting the first Armenian post was destroyed (2 men were killed, 10 were wounded). Some Azerbaijani soldiers also were among casualties as the result of this clash.

Above mentioned S. Abbasov, who was among defenders of Khojalu, confessed afterwards, that after destruction of the Armenian post near Nakhijevanik village “we managed to have a narrow escape with the help from Aghdam”.⁵⁸ Aghdam forces “arrived in time”, and Khojalu civilians “made their way”, as was already marked, right on the fields, where the corpses were found later. It is clear that no Armenian military unit could be stationed in the territory under control of large Azerbaijani armed forces.

The number of efficient military groups of the Armenians were limited at that time, and practically all of them were involved the Khojalu operation. It should be mentioned that in the beginning of 1992 the military clashes between the Armenian and Azerbaijani forces only began, and both sides were at the initial stage of formation of armed forces.

As it was mentioned, the operation on suppression of fire emplacements in and around Khojalu and de-blockading of the only airport began at 23:00 p. m. with artillery bombardment. At 23:30 infantry moved towards Khojalu but no serious resistance Armenian forces met in the city. The majority of Khojalu civilians together with the Azerbaijani soldiers left the village in panic. At 01:30 Armenians intercepted an Azerbaijani radiogram, in which remaining Azerbaijani forces reported to Shushi and Aghdam headquarters about their decision to follow fleeing civilians towards Aghdam direction.

However one-two small groups of Azeris were blocked by the Armenians and continued their resistance till 4 o’clock in the morning. Except them no Azerbaijanis remained in Khojalu at that moment. In a telephone conversation Artur Mkrtchyan, President of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic with the Azerbaijani colleague said that “They (civilian population of Khojalu – H. D., L. M.-Sh.,) left Khojalu before it was occupied by Armenian forces”. The distance to the place, where afterwards the numerous corpses of civilians were found is approximately 11-12 km by highway and 3-4 km less by a direct route.

DEVELOPMENT OF THE EVENTS IN KHOJALY AFTER FEBRUARY 26

DEVELOPMENT OF THE EVENTS AFTER FEBRUARY 26

After the assault rumors spread in Baku that the Armenian soldiers seized Khojalu and made savage reprisals against the settlers of the village, saving neither women nor children. Mutalibov immediately called the ministers of interior T. Kerimov and state security I. Husseinov to his place, who confirmed the rumors about the death of many people.

Moreover, after getting informed about the mass killings of Azerbaijanis in Khojalu, the President of Azerbaijan A. Mutalibov called with the NKR authorities in Stepanakert. In the frequently referred work by K. Stolyarov the author cites an interesting talk between Mutalibov and the President of the Supreme Soviet of NKR A. Mkrtchyan: “What war is it?! Even the fascists wouldn’t afford themselves such atrocities against the civilians!” According to Stolyarov, during the talk Mutalibov had mentioned a number of 800 to 1000 people killed. To this A. Mrtchyan replied at a loss: “What are you speaking about, the population was given a corridor. They left Khojalu before the seizure of the village. Part of your people had left for Stepanakert and they are with us right now. We feed them, though we lack food ourselves. So make it out, you are misinformed.” Mutalibov brings the same talk in an interview given to a Czech journalist Dana Mazalova that was later reprinted in the Moscow press.³⁴

After the telephone talk with A. Mktrchyan and the Minister of Interior of NKR A. Isagulov, it is likely that Mutalibov, who did not trust the Armenian side, decided to send a group of journalists to check the fact objectively.

A group of journalist from Baku and abroad was nearby during the studies period, in the town of Aghdam. The President of Azerbaijan, negotiating and getting the consent from Ye. Shaposhnikov beforehand, further called the commander of the Transcaucasus Military District V. Patrikeev, who allotted two helicopters to deliver the journalists to Khojalu.

PARTICIPATION OF CIS 366-th REGIMENT IN KHOJALY

6. ABOUT THE PARTICIPATION OF CIS 366-th REGIMENT

The fact of participation of the 366th motorized rifle regiment of the CIS forces dislocated in Stepanakert is spread mainly by the refugees from Khojalu. The report by the Moscow “Memorial” also mentions that the fighting machines with their crews have participated in the assault. There is also an opinion that the participation of the military in the operations was not sanctioned by a written order of the regiment command.³¹

There an explanation to this entire jumble. Since January 1992 Stepanakert had been continuously shelled with artillery missiles from Shushi, Khojalu and the nearby villages of Kosalar and Jangasaran. No wonder part of the missiles and shells fell in the territory of the military unit destroying and killing several militaries from the regiment personnel. In February 1992 the Moscow radio and television reported on the issue. For instance, only on February 23 there were losses in the 366 regiment including 2 casualties and wounded personnel.³² To provide security of the regiment personnel the commander-in-chief of the CIS joint forces Air Marshall Ye. Shaposhnikov ordered the 366th regiment dislocated in Stepanakert to suppress the weapon emplacements. Worthy to mention that according to the order the suppression of the weapon emplacements had to be realized from the position of the regiment without the right to leave outside the territory of the military unit. The command of the regiment did use the opportunity and in March, before the withdrawal of the regiment from Stepanakert, the inhabitants of the city could see for several times an artillery duel between the Azerbaijanis and the soldiers of the CIS. At the same time the correspondent of TASS was informed in the headquarters of the Transcaucasus military district that the personnel had the right to suppress those weapon emplacements, which fire at the territory of the military unit.³³

In reality the personnel of the 366th motorized rifle regiment of the CIS did not take part in the Khojalu assault. As a matter of fact, there was no necessity in it for the Armenian armed formations had their own armored machines. As early as in the beginning of December they undertook disarmament of a Soviet militia regiment, thrown to Stepanakert to provide a regime of state emergency. As a result of this the Armenian detachments got a significant amount of rifle weaponry and several units of armored equipment (armored personal carriers (APC), and other type of military vehicles (BRDM) ). The small part of this equipment, even excluding the trophy equipment taken from the Azerbaijanis, would suffice to succeed in the operation.

We suppose the myth about the 366th regiment participation in the battles for Khojalu was born:

• as a result of the attempts by the Azerbaijani defenders of Khojalu to “justify themselves” to the compatriots;
• because the Khojalu assault was the fist time since the beginning of the conflict that the Armenian armed detachments used military armed equipment.

---

³¹ Nezavisimaya gazeta, 18. 06. 1992.
³² Respublika Armenia, 03. 03. 1992.
³³ Yerkir, Yerevan, 25. 02. 1992.

THE KHOJALY OFFENSIVE

In terms of the Azerbaijani population Khojalu was the second after Shushi. The settlement is located in the strategically vital place and actually divides the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh into two. It was the military strategic importance of Khojalu that since the very beginning of the National-liberation movement of the Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh that the Azerbaijani authorities initiated intensive construction works and settling the Azerbaijanis from remote regions in Khojalu as well as Meskhetian Turks – since 1989. As a result of this single-minded policy of changing the demographic situation in Nagorno-Karabakh and dissection of the Armenians of the region held by the Azerbaijani authorities the population of the settlement tripled from 2135 in 1988 to 6300 in 1991. Owing to this kind of artificial increase Khojalu was granted status of town.¹⁷ No doubt people were moving into a militarily and politically unstable region not on their own free will.

The following fact is another proof that the Azerbaijani authorities were informed on the forthcoming anticipatory assault of Armenians on Khojalu. By mid February 1992 before leaving for Minsk to the summit of the CIS, President A. Mutalibov ordered to throw all the accumulated reserves of the military equipment in the Aghdam region. 11 tanks and 12 infantry fighting machines BMP-2 were quickly delivered there, which together with the available in Aghdam 44 caterpillar armored machines of BRDM type, equipped with 12 millimeters calibers machine-guns presented an inspiring force, which could help the Khojalu settlers in case of an attack in any moment, but was also threaten Stepanakert itself.¹⁸

REASONS FOR THE ASSAULT OF KHOJALY

Part-1,2,3

By the time of neutralizing the weapon emplacements in Khojalu already two years had passed since the siege of the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, the independence of which was declared on September 2, 1991. Besides, the majority of inhabitants of the 24 deported villages found asylum in Stepanakert. Together with the earlier arrived Armenians from Azerbaijan, who escaped from pogroms in Sumgait, Baku, Mingechaur, etc., the number of the refugees, deportees and forcefully removed people settled in Nagorno-Karabakh exceeded 35.000, which made the 25 percents of the total population of NKR.

Between spring and autumn 1991 the Armenian settlements of Karabakh had been daily attacked by the brigands of the Azerbaijani militia. More than 700 people among civilians were taken to hostage by the militia, tens of thousands of cattle was driven out, thousands of hectares of grain sowings had been set to fire. The greater part of the Nagorno-Karabakh population was deprived of energy and water supplies.

Since September 1991 the residential areas of Stepanakert and many border settlements of NKR were under daily continuous bombardments with the use of artillery and modified anti-hail jet missile mounts Alazan and Kristal. Since January 1992 the weapons used against the civil population included also military jet missile launchers BM-21 Grad, banned for the use against settlements. Since mid-February 1992 Stepanakert was being rained down by 160 shells of Grad and Alazan daily.⁶

Two years later State Secretary of Azerbaijan Lala Shovket Hajieva would be reproaching the flocking Azerbaijanis on the bank of Arax River with the following words: «For more than hundred days we have been shelling Stepanakert, day and night, but Armenians did not leave their homes. You run already when there is no sound of explosion of the Armenians’ shells».⁷ Lets not complain about the inaccuracy of the highly-ranked lady – Stepanakert had been bombed for more than one hundred days; the fact of acknowledgment by the official Baku on sanctioned shelling of residential areas in the capital of NKR is more important to us.

Justice for Khojaly-3

Khojaly Part-1 and Part-2

3. THE POLITICAL SITUATION IN AZERBAIJAN IN 1991-1992

Independence of Azerbaijan gained as a result of the collapse of the USSR in 1991 logically drew to a complicated political situation in Azerbaijan. The major competing forces in the country were the incumbent old Communist nomenklatura and the growing oppositional Popular Front (hereinafter – PFA). Both sides speculated over the developments in Nagorno-Karabakh and aspired to exploit them against one another in their power struggle.

In January 1990 violent pogroms and massacres against the Armenian population of Baku, numbering over 200 000, were organized. This made the Soviet authorities to bring Soviet army into the capital of Azerbaijan. The PFA interpreted the introduction of the Soviet army forces in Baku soundly as a menace to its growing influence, and decided for an armed resistance. The clashes between people from the PFA and the Soviet armed forces brought to tens of dead from both sides and served as cause for launching a large-scale anti-governmental campaign by the opposition. The PFA expected to gain sympathies of the majority of the population in Azerbaijan by this and prepare grounds for seizing power. The gap between the leadership of Azerbaijan and the opposition continuously grew; neither did the sides disdained dirty means in this political confrontation. According to the president of Azerbaijan A. Mutalibov the PFA “by extremism, by shape, by structure is a Communist, Bolshevik movement. They have supporting cells, functionaries – nothing new except for the name. The PFA has turned into a real ultra nationalistic movement.”¹ Noteworthy, Mutalibov, an experienced Communist himself, had to be well aware that Communism is a supranational ideology recognizing only class differences. At the same time he had to be well aware also about the level of hatred towards the Communism among Azerbaijanis. That is the reason he labels his political opponents that way.

Justice for Khojaly-2

Beginning about Khojaly events is here

2. SOURCES

The sources used in this research are mainly comprised of several works of a documentary type. Those are books by an American journalist Thomas Goltz The Azerbaijan Diary and that by a Russian columnist Kirill Stolyarov Raspad: ot Nagornovo Karabakha do Belovezhskoy Pushi. Both works, except for their source study characteristics and witness information, are distinguished if not for anti-Armenian then, at any case, are notable for open pro-Azerbaijani sympathies of the authors. At the same time, the mentinoed sympathies are expressed towards various political camps of the Azerbaijani political elite. Thomas Goltz’s work, along with its anti-Russian and anti-Armenian orientation, is saturated also with sentiments against Mutalibov and an overt sympathy to the activists of the Popular Front of Azerbaijan. Stolyarov’s book, on the contrary, is targeted against the functionaries of the Popular Front and stands out for obvious pro-Mutalibov sympathies. The comparison of the data brought by the two authors permits to freely picture the political situation and state of the mind of various political groups in Azerbaijan on the threshold of 1991-1992 in general, and the Khojalu events in particular.

Justice for Khojaly-1

1

Real truth about events happened in Khojaly on February 26, 1992

1. FOREWORD

Armenian is a gyavur.* Armenian is a tyrant. Armenian is a bloodsucker…
Armenian is a dirty spot on the name of Great Allah, on the whole
lucid mankind… Hey, heirs of lucid Mohammad! Always be aware of the
gyavur Armenian. Armenian sucks the human blood.

These is an excerpt from a call refrained for over ten times from Nasiman Yagublu’s book “The Crash of Khojalu” (in Azerb.). Published in Baku this book breathes with hatred towards the Armenian ethnos and is saturated with calls to annihilate Armenians as an ethnos.

At the end of February 1992 the armed divisions of Nagorno-Karabakh Republic made a successful effort smoothing the weapon emplacements in the Khojalu settlement and releasing the airport nearby the settlement. Unfortunately, some details of the military operation in our history of not so far ago are still covered with dark. The official Baku skillfully uses this circumstance and tries to use it for getting its political aims, while the destiny of the Khojalu settlers and other Azerbaijani refugees have been turned into a safe haven for the Azerbaijani authorities in stirring both domestic and international propaganda. It is noteworthy, that all the propaganda is conducted with vividly manifested anti-Armenian insinuations and is used for forcing ethnic intolerance and enmity towards Armenians among Azerbaijanis.