Baku townspeople commemorate “Black January” victims

On the 35th anniversary of Soviet troops’ invasion into the city, Baku residents came to the memorial on the Alley of Martyrs to commemorate the casualties.

On January 20, the anniversary of Soviet troops’ entry into Azerbaijan, Baku residents usually come to the Alley of Martyrs (fallen heroes), where those who perished during those tragic events are buried.

Gusein Guseinzade, a pensioner, shared his memories of the 1990 events with the “Caucasian Knot” correspondent.

“Three days before January 20, Armenians were taken out of the city; tragic events stopped; Soviet militaries were standing at Baku crossroads; and it seemed that the worst was behind us... But at night on January 20, an assault of Baku was launched. Columns of infantry fighting vehicles and armoured personnel carriers entered the city, shooting non-stop ... Shots were heard in the city at night; and in the morning, when we went outside, we saw terrible pictures in some city places – people crushed by tracks,” Guseinzade said.

Another resident of Baku, Kamran Alizade, said that in 1990 he was in Gyandja, where he learned about what was happening in the capital, after which he came to Baku.

“My children and wife told me how they lay on the floor of the apartment all night, as bullets flew past the windows, and they heard screams in the street. In the morning, when people left their homes, it became clear what a massive atrocity was committed by the Soviet army,” Alizade said.