11:05, 26 February 2019

Residents of Azerbaijan commemorate victims of Khojaly tragedy

Participants of mourning events in memory of the victims of the Khojaly tragedy, Baku, February 26, 2018. Photo by Aziz Karimov for the Caucasian Knot

Today, on February 26, Azerbaijan commemorates the victims of the Khojaly tragedy. On this day, 27 years ago, during the Karabakh conflict, the town of Khojaly was captured, which led to mass civilian casualties. On the eve of the anniversary of the mournful date, the events dedicated to Khojaly victims were held both in Azerbaijan and abroad.

At night of February 25-26, 1992, during the armed conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, the Armenian armed forces assaulted the town of Khojaly mainly populated by Azerbaijanis. For more than four months, the town of Khojaly stayed completely cordoned off until the Armenian forces took control over it. During this time, according to the Azerbaijani authorities, 613 civilians were killed, including 63 children, 106 women, and 70 old people. 1275 civilians were taken hostage. Until present, the fate of 150 of them is unknown.

From early morning, thousands of Baku residents go to the memorial complex "Mother's Call", erected in the Khatai District of the Azerbaijani capital in memory of the victims of the Khojaly tragedy.

At 5:00 p.m. local time, throughout the country, a minute of silence will be held to honour the victims of the Khojaly tragedy, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told at the presidential administration of Azerbaijan. In the republic's cities and districts, villages and towns national flags will be lowered.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 26, 2019 at 06:20 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Faik Medzhid

Source: CK correspondent