Azernews.Az

By Nazrin Gadimova

Days of Azerbaijan, organized at the initiative of the International Association Israel-Azerbaijan (AZIS) with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation and the STMEGI International Foundation of Mountain Jews, opened in the Israeli town of Kiryat Ekron on September 24.

Days of Azerbaijan in Israel include a number of events to be held in various locations across the country, both in the center and the periphery. The main purpose of the event is to bring the two peoples closer, and to acquaint Israeli citizens with the Azerbaijani culture, history and the present day of the Azerbaijan.

Addressing the opening ceremony of the event, Head of the AZIS Lev Spivak said the main goal is to convey to the people of Israel the truth about the events of recent times and over the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Before the official opening of the event many guests have experienced a real shock when getting acquainted with the materials of a mobile photo exhibition "Justice for Khojaly" in the foyer the Kiryat Ekron's Central House of Culture. This exhibition has been demonstrated in many Israeli cities recently and each time the reaction of the audience was similar.

"It is impossible to look at these photos without feeling pain and compassion for the victims of the crime committed in Khojaly," Mayor of Kiryat Ekron Arik Hadad said at the event. "We must know and remember what happened there. The world must know about it!"

In his speech, the mayor emphasized the necessity of developing cultural ties between Israel and Azerbaijan.

The first evening of the Days of Azerbaijan in Israel ended with a concert, which was attended by Israeli singers Tomer Aliyev and Orli Abramov.

Songs performed by Orli Abramov in Hebrew and Azerbaijani languages were a good example of close musical cultures of the two nations. The performance of the group led by Pnina Jaskov who presented Azerbaijani folk dances was met with thunderous applauses.

Days of Azerbaijan in Israel are continuing and Lev Spivak promises more surprises for Israeli people during this holiday.