Azerbaijan , Baku, Feb. 26 /Trend/
The Azerbaijani Embassy and representative office of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation in Romania conducted a commemorative event dedicated to the 19th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide, the press service of the Embassy reported.
The event was attended by representatives of local intelligentsia, representatives of the EU and European Parliament institutions in Romania, members of the Romanian delegation to PACE, current and former senators, Azerbaijanis living and studying in Romania, representatives of the Turkic-Tatar community, ethnic Azerbaijanis from Iran, representatives of the Romanian youth awarded with Heydar Aliyev stipend, the representatives of embassies and international missions in Romania and the representatives of civil society organizations specializing in human rights.
The event participants paid a minute's silence in memory of those brutally killed in Khojaly. Noting that the Khojaly genocide is the most terrible and bloody day in the history of Azerbaijan, the speakers at the event informed about the grave consequences of bloodshed committed by the Armenians.
Later, the participants of the event was provided with information on the international information campaign "Justice for Khojaly" established by Leyla Aliyeva , the Vice President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, General Coordinator of the OIC Youth Foundation on Intercultural Dialogue. The initiative was highly appreciated by guests. It was also noted that the campaign has completed collecting signatures on a petition to be addressed to world leaders to recognize Khojaly genocide as a crime committed against humanity.
The event participants got familiarized with the brochures from the series "Real Facts on Karabakh" published by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, with books "Khojaly genocide (in the documents, facts and foreign press)", "Khojaly tragedy" published in Romanian, "Armenian myth. Armenian extremism: its causes and its historical content. A photo exhibition "Khojaly with eyes of children", reflecting the horrors of Khojali genocide, was demonstrated.
The Armenian military forces committed genocide in Khojaly on Feb. 26, 1992. More than 600 people were killed, including 63 children, 106 women and 70 old men. A total of 1,000 civilians were disabled during the genocide. Eight families were annihilated, 130 children lost one parent, and 25 lost both. Additionally, 1,275 peaceful residents were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 remains unknown.