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French lawyer: People were killed in Khojaly just because they were Azerbaijanis

2 March 2017 13:37 (UTC+04:00)
French lawyer: People were killed in Khojaly just because they were Azerbaijanis

By Laman Ismayilova

French lawyer Olivier Pardo, who has initiated a petition for the recognition of Khojaly Genocide by the French government, is sure that these atrocities must be brought to the attention of the world.

“People were killed in Khojaly just because they were Azerbaijanis. Killing people because of their national affiliation is an ethnic cleansing”, said Pardo in his interview to Azertac.

February 26 marked the 25th anniversary of the bloody tragedy, which went down in history of mankind in the 20th century as the Khojaly Genocide.

Khojaly is one of one of the most gruesome and tragic acts of genocide in recent history. Of 3,000 people who were in the town of Khojaly at the moment of the Armenian attack 613 were killed, including 106 women, 63 children and 70 elders. 487 people were severely wounded, including 76 children. 1,275 people were captured and subjected to unprecedented torture, the fate of 197 people still remains unknown. 8 families were totally annihilated, 130 children lost one and 25 lost both parents.

“Learning the truth about the Khojaly tragedy, I was very surprised by the non-recognition of this massacre, particularly in France and Europe. What could be worse than to deny that mass killings? It reminded me massacres that took place in France”, the French lawyer said.

Speaking about his activities in the direction of recognition of Khojaly in France, Pardo emphasized that he is in constant contact with local journalists and therefore, launched the campaign to inform media representatives about this massacre.

Speaking about the campaign launched, the French lawyer said that for publishing petition Armenian origin lawyers demanded him give up this job. But he did not agree with it.

Stressing that the Khojaly tragedy is an act of genocide, Pardo stressed that the French public, who are not aware of the Khojaly massacre must be informed about the incident.

“My goal is to collect as many signatures as possible,” the lawyer added.

The petition is posted on change.org and appeals to the authorities of France. The petition is accessible at https://www.change.org/p/petition-pour-faire-reconnaitre-le-massacre-de-khojaly

“Few French people know about the tragedy in Khojaly, and the French authorities, even if they are aware of this story, prefer to remain silent to avoid having to place the responsibility on the perpetrators,” the petition reads.

“However, as the traditional defender of human rights, France should not show indifference. Today, 25 years later, we want the French government and international organizations to recognize the massacre in Khojaly. My initiative has one goal - to pay tribute to the forgotten victims of the crime,” Pardo writes.

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