Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijanis living abroad have organized rallies and events in a memory of the Khojaly genocide, heinous crime committed by the Armenian vandals against innocent Azerbaijani civilians in early 1990s.

In 1992, the town of 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.

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. Civilians were shot at close range, scalped, and burned alive. Some had their eyes gouged out and others were beheaded.

Azerbaijani and Turkish diasporas in Finland have staged a rally in front of the country`s parliament in Helsinki to commemorate victims of the Khojaly genocide, a massacre that saw brutal murder of hundreds of Azerbaijani civilians in the town of Khojaly 22 years ago.

Held as part of the Justice for Khojaly campaign, the rally was organized by the Finland-Azerbaijan Friendship Society, and involved members of Azerbaijani and Turkish diaspora organizations, Azerbaijani students and members of Helsinki`s general public.

The rally participants held "Justice for Khojaly" banners as well as Azerbaijani and Turkish flags.

Chairperson of the Finland-Azerbaijan Friendship Society Tarana Nazarova made a speech calling the Khojaly genocide "the most brutal crime against humanity committed by the Armenians".

She urged the international community to condemn "this terror act".

The rally protesters observed a minute`s silence for the victims of the Khojaly genocide.

Chairman of the Turkish diaspora organization Engir Uludamar said the Turks have been subjected to many terror acts throughout history and the last one was committed in Khojaly 22 years ago.

He regretted that unfortunately, the international community has not yet made a proper judgment on this crime.

The rally participants signed a Khojaly petition, which was sent to Finland`s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and parliament.

Also, the rally was held in the German city of Nuremberg to commemorate the Khojaly genocide.

The protesters held flags of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Germany, as well as posters with slogans. The action lasted two hours.

The 22th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide was commemorated in Izmir city of Turkey.

The event was organized by the Azerbaijani Embassy in Ankara and Azerbaijani society for dialogue and brotherhood functioning in Turkey.

The event was attended by representatives of the city administration, the public, and student groups from different countries studying in Izmir.

Also, the Congress of Azerbaijanis in Sweden held a seminar on February 21 in honor of the 22th anniversary of Khojaly genocide.

The seminar was attended by Swedish public figures, representatives of the municipality, the Azerbaijani ambassador to Sweden Adish Mammadov, as well as representatives of various circles of Azerbaijan operating in Sweden.

The guests watched a documentary in English about how Armenians repeatedly committed acts of genocide against the Azerbaijani people and saying the massacre in Khojaly was the bloodiest moment in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The representative of the Congress of Azerbaijanis in Sweden said negotiations are underway with one of the municipalities of Stockholm regarding the establishment of the monument in honor of the victims of the Khojaly genocide.

Also, Azerbaijanis living in Madrid will hold a rally with the support of the Azerbaijani Embassy to Spain in front of the Armenian Embassy to commemorate Khojaly tragedy victims.

The rally will see four UN Security Council resolutions read out in Spanish, English, Azerbaijani and Russian languages and, brochures on the genocide distributed to the people.

The event will culminate with presentation of a message of the rally participants to the Armenian Embassy.

The parliaments of Pakistan, Mexico, Colombia, Romania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Czech Republic, Jordan, as well as legislative bodies of about 20 states of the Unites States, including Texas, New-Mexico, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Western Virginia, New-Jersey and Tennessee have adopted relevant documents.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) adopted a final Communiqué in Cairo back in February 2013, calling the Khojaly tragedy genocide against humanity. The Communiqué called on the international community to take a similar approach towards the genocide.