BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 26. A minute of silence has been observed at 17:00 (GMT +4) throughout the territory of Azerbaijan to honor the memory of the Khojaly massacre victims, Trend reports.
During this time, the movement of vehicles on the streets of the capital was suspended. In cities, districts, villages, as well as in diplomatic representations of the country abroad, the national flags of Azerbaijan were lowered.
Thousands of residents of Baku, having visited the monument to the victims of the tragedy in the city's Khatai district, paid their respects to the memory of the martyrs, laying wreaths and carnations at the monument. In cities and regions of the country, in central and local executive authorities, agencies and organizations, mosques, churches, synagogues, as well as in foreign countries, ceremonies of remembrance, events, processions, flash mobs, and cultural activities dedicated to the massacre victims has taken place.
In the places of temporary resettlement of Khojaly residents, meetings were organized with witnesses of the massacre and family members of the tragedy victims. The memory of the Khojaly massacre victims was honored in the mosques of Khojaly, Shusha, Aghdam, Khankendi cities, and in other liberated territories where the majestic flag of Azerbaijan is waving.
To note, today marks the 32nd commemoration of the Khojaly massacre. On the night of February 25-26, 1992, Khojaly city was occupied by Armenia’s armed forces with the assistance of the former USSR’s 366th Motorized Rifle Regiment following massive artillery shelling.
As a result of the occupation, 613 people, including 63 children, 106 women, and 70 elderly citizens were brutally murdered, eight families were completely wiped out, 130 children lost one of their parents, and 25 children lost both of their parents. The fate of 150 people, including 68 women and 26 children out of 1275 people, who were taken prisoner and hostage as well as cruelly tortured is still unknown.
On September 19-20, 2023, Azerbaijan carried out anti-terrorist measures in Karabakh. This way, Azerbaijan's sovereignty and territorial integrity were fully restored. On October 15 last year, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev raised the national flag in Khojaly.
Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel