Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb.26
By Elchin Mehdiyev Trend:
"Nagorno-Karabakh is a native Azerbaijani land occupied by Armenia," the Ombudsman of Moldova, Aurelia Grigoriu said at the event dedicated to the Khojaly genocide held in the Ombudsman`s Administration in Baku, their press-service reported on Feb. 26.
The perpetrators of the Khojaly tragedy should be brought to justice, and justice must be restored, she said.
A special tribunal should be created in order to bring perpetrators of the Khojaly genocide to criminal liability like the one established in regard to Yugoslavia's genocide.
Grigoriu stressed the necessity of Azerbaijan`s initiating the establishment of such tribunal.
Moldovan Ombudsman also proposed holding an event in Guba with the participation of international experts on the study of genocides, committed since 1905 by Armenia against Azerbaijanis, to familiarize them with the created Guba Genocide Memorial Complex.
On February 25-26, 1992 Armenian occupation forces together with the 366th infantry regiment of Soviet troops stationed in Khankendi committed an act of genocide against the population of the Azerbaijani town of Khojaly.
Some 613 people were killed, including 63 children, 106 women and 70 old people. A total of 1,000 civilians were disabled during the genocide.
Eight families were totally exterminated, 130 children lost one parent and 25 children lost both. Some 1,275 innocent residents were taken hostages, while the fate of 150 people remains unknown.
The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.
Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the U.S. are currently holding peace negotiations.
Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
Translated by S.I.
Edited by C.N