Azernews.Az

By Nazrin Gadimova

Today, Azerbaijanis mourn for the victims of the Khojaly genocide, one of the most horrible tragedies of the 20th century.

A number of Turkish officials made statements in support of Azerbaijan on the day of remembrance of this unspeakable tragedy.

Ankara strongly condemns the crime committed against humanity in Khojaly, said İbrahim Kalın, spokesperson for the Turkish president, adding that Turkey honors the memory of those killed in Khojaly and expresses condolences to the Azerbaijani people.

"At the same time, Turkey wishes for intensifying of diplomatic efforts by the OSCE Minsk Group for settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict", Kalın added.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry also made a statement in connection with the Khojaly massacre.

"We share sorrows of the brotherly Azerbaijani people, which have been attacked 24 years ago in Khojaly. We condemn the genocide committed by Armenia, as well as the occupation of Azerbaijani territories," the statement reads.

Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party also blamed the genocide committed against the peaceful Azerbaijani population.

Selva Cam, head of the AKP’s women branch, noted that the international community shouldn’t turn a blind eye to the crime against humanity committed in Khojaly.

"We express our condolences to Azerbaijani brothers and ask Allah for the repose of souls of the genocide victims," she added.

Head of the Azerbaijan-Turkey inter-parliamentary group of friendship Necdet Unüvar, in turn, said the Khojaly genocide is not only the tragedy of the Turkic world, it is a tragedy of all humanity.

Unüvar noted that the international community should discuss the Khojaly genocide confirmed by real facts, documents and videos instead of discussing the so-called "genocide" of Armenians.

"If the international community was not blind to the Khojaly genocide, then other crimes against humanity would not occur in the world today," he said, adding that Turkey should always keep this issue on the agenda.

“Instead of punishing those committed the Khojaly genocide, the Armenian side declared them heroes and gave them government posts. There is no development in Armenia, which occupied Azerbaijani lands, and currently it is the poorest country in the region.”

Khojaly, the second largest town in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, came under intense fire from the towns of Khankendi and Askeran already occupied by the Armenian armed forces in 1992.

As many as 613 civilians mostly women and children were killed in the massacre, and a total of 1,000 people were disabled. Eight families were exterminated, 25 children lost both parents, and 130 children lost one parent. Moreover, 1,275 innocent people were taken hostage, and the fate of 150 of them remains unknown.

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Nazrin Gadimova is AzerNews’ staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @NazrinGadimova

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