Israeli envoy voices regret over level of destruction in Jojug Marjanli village
By Laman Ismayilova
The visit to the Jojug Marjanli village serves as a reminder of the need for peaceful resolution of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, said Dan Stav, Israel’s Ambassador to Baku.
“I joined the visit in Jojug Marjanli village, organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan as I strongly believe that first hand impression is important in order to have better understanding of the ground situation in one of the central issues on the agenda and that is the lingering conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan,” the envoy told Trend on February 15 following the visit.
Representatives of diplomatic missions of foreign countries and heads of international organizations accredited in Azerbaijan visited the liberated Jojug Marjanli village in the country's Jabrayil region on February 15. The delegation got acquainted with the ongoing reconstruction work in Jojug Marjanli. Besides, the diplomats visited the Hajiyevs, the only family living in the village.
“I was deeply saddened to see the level of destruction. At the same time I am hoping that quite soon people will be able to return to the rebuilt village and fully cultivate the fertile land around it,” Stav said.
“It was heartwarming to meet members of the family who have been continuously living in the village since 1994 and to see how well the family is doing.”
Noting that Israel supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, the envoy said his country backs the efforts by the co-chairs of the Minsk Group to achieve a peaceful resolution of the conflict, as these efforts are acceptable to both sides.
The village was fully liberated from the Armenian occupation in April 2016, when Azerbaijani Armed Forces prevented an Armenian provocation on the contact line. To protect civilian population, the Azerbaijani army launched counter attacks and as a result, the Azerbaijani troops retook hills around the village of Talish, as well as Seysulan settlement, and also took over Leletepe hill located in the direction of Fizuli region.
Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions of Azerbaijan are under the control of the Armenian military and separatists since a war between Armenia and Azerbaijan ended in 1994.
The OSCE Minsk Group on Nagorno-Karabakh problem could not gain significant progress in finding solution to the problem for more than twenty years.
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