KHOJALY: Chronicle, facts, events

Involvement of the 366th Motorized Infantry Regiment in the massacre

In 1985, the 366th regiment forming a part of the 23rd division of the 4th Army was transferred from Ganja to Khankendi (Stepanakert). Under the staff, there should have been 1800 servicemen in the regiment, but in fact, there were only 630 people left in February, 129 out of them officers and warrant officers, with 49 being Armenians. In spring 1991, a lieutenant colonel, Yuriy Zarvigorov was appointed the commander of the regiment. According to numerous testimonies of witnesses, including soldiers, who ran away at a different time, the whole military hardware, and even the personnel of the regiment were virtually at the disposal of Armenians. There existed a certain scale of payment calculation: Armenians gave 20 litres of alcohol to servicemen for each time they shelled the town of Shusha out of cannons [read more]

Background

Khojaly is a small city located in the currently occupied Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. Before its occupation, it was entirely populated by Azerbaijanis. From the very beginning of the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, the Armenian side had been planning occupation of Khojaly for a number of reasons.

For example, the only airport of Karabakh was located in Khojaly; it also had geostrategic importance for both Azerbaijanis and Armenians since it was located in the middle of the highway connecting Agdam with Shusha and Askeran with Khankendi (Stepanakert).

Besides, Khojaly was one of the largest settlements in Karabakh predominantly populated by Azerbaijanis. [read more]

Assault on Khojaly

The attack on the city began on the night of February 25-26, 1992. At 11 p.m shelling of Khojaly started. After the shelling, the Armenian forces with the assistance of troops from the 366th Regiment of the CIS stationed in Stepanakert, marched into the city. Witness accounts confirm that the troops from the 366th Regiment took active part during the assault and occupation of the city. Khojaly was surrounded from three sides, whence the military troops entered into the city.

By 7 a.m. the last point of Azeri resistance was taken out by the enemy forces. The residents of the city had to flee through the snowy areas, a lot of them being without footwear and warm clothes; therefore a number of people died of frostbite on the way. [read more]

Frame-ups in propaganda films

Authors of the film quoted a few sentences from an interview with Ramiz Fataliyev (chairman of the Parliamentary Commission of inquiry into the Khojaly massacre), but they manage to forge even these few sentences pulled out of context.

The original of this interview is in Azerbaijani language; in the film, his words were submitted in Russian, but with an amendment in favor of Armenians. In the film, the authors added the following to Fataliyev’s words:

“That is, we provoked Armenians to attack”- this small postscript to the words of Fataliyev, radically changes the meaning of his statement.

 [read more]

Witnesses’ testimony

...Hasanabad, Mehdikend, Bozdagh - they were shooting from everywhere. The land shuddered at the sound of armored infantry vehicles smashing into Khojaly. At first, women and children were told to hide in the basements.

Then Elman Mamedov, the head of the executive power, came and said that we had to escape, otherwise we would be exterminated. Alif Hajiyev, the director of the airport led the rescue operation breaking through Armenian lines to take the civilians to Agdam. We were trapped in an ambush near the village of Nakhichevanik.

I will never forget what I saw: there were piles of corpses. My mother was shot dead. My daughters Hijran and Sevinj were injured. At the same moment the bullet hit me. [read more]

«Escape route»

There exist a number of evidences and facts showing that the seizure of Khodjaly and massacre of its population was organized by Armenians not only to capture a strategic settlement but to intimidate Azerbaijanis. They intended to deter residents of towns and villages in Karabakh inhabited by Azeri people and believed it would facilitate the ethnic cleansing in the region. For instance, they undertook the similar tactics though small-scaled while seizing Karadaghly settlement.

Serge Sarkisian described it in the following way: “We decided to cut the frontline short” (>>>). It should be noted that they were a success at this task to a certain extent. After the capture of Khodjaly, some residents of settlements with Azerbaijanis living there were scared they could experience the same. [read more]


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