Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijani embassy in the United States has organized an event dedicated to the 20th anniversary of the Zangilan region's occupation by Armenia, Azerbaijan's state-run news agency Azertag reported.

The event, held within the framework of activities aimed at promoting awareness in the American society about the Armenian occupation of Azerbaijani territories and the injustice facing the people of Azerbaijan.

Attendees spoke about the invasion of Azerbaijan's ancient Nagorno-Karabakh land, along with seven adjacent Azerbaijani regions, including Zangilan, and the suffering inflicted by the terror acts committed by the Armenians against the Azerbaijani people.

Speakers said that the last 20 years have not undermined the resolve of the IDPs to return to their native lands and expressed confidence for a successful outcome of Azerbaijan's efforts to make justice prevail.

During the event it was also noted that pressure on the Armenian invaders has increased year-on-year in the international arena as a result of the successes of Azerbaijani diplomacy, and at the same time, substantial work has been carried out in army building, which is in the focus of attention of the country's leadership.

The event participants said organized efforts of the countrymen living abroad have a special importance in conveying the truth about the invasion which Azerbaijan faces to the attention of the international community.

The participants were briefed on Zangilan's geographical location, nature, history, cultural heritage and courage of the region's population during the war.

The embassy's press release entitled "Zangilan: two decades of illegal occupation" has been published in more than 100 leading world media, including Yahoo! News, Reuters and Heraldonline.

October 29 marked twenty years of the occupation of Zangilan, an Azerbaijani region occupied by Armenian armed forces since a lengthy war in the early 1990s. During the Karabakh war Zangilan lost 188 people. So far, the region's 44 residents are among the people missing in the aftermath of the bitter conflict with Armenia.

Prior to the invasion 35,000 people lived in the Zangilan region, which covers an area of 707 sq. km.

Armenia's territorial claims in the late 1980s and the ensuing military aggression resulted in the occupation of 20 percent of Azerbaijani territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh, and also seven surrounding regions. More than a million Azerbaijanis became refugees and IDPs in the aftermath of the war between the two South Caucasus republics.

The UN Security Council's four resolutions on Armenian withdrawal have not been enforced to this day.

Russia, France and the U.S. have long been working to broker a solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through the OSCE Minsk Group, but their efforts have been largely fruitless so far.