33rd anniversary of the Khojaly Genocide
On February 26, 2025, Azerbaijan marks the 33rd anniversary of the Khojaly genocide, a tragic event during the Karabakh conflict. Following the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991, Armenian forces escalated their offensive against Azerbaijanis, leading to the mass murder of civilians in various Azerbaijani villages, including Khojaly. Before the genocide, around 50 residents of Malibeyli and Kushchular villages were killed by Armenian forces in February 1992.
On the night of February 25–26, 1992, Armenian forces committed the horrific genocide in Khojaly, killing 613 people, including 63 children, 106 women, and 70 elderly. Over 487 were wounded, and 1,275 were taken prisoner, with the fate of 150 remaining unknown. This massacre is a central part of Azerbaijan's foreign policy, with recognition from several countries, including Pakistan, Sudan, and 22 U.S. states.
Khojaly had been under siege since October 1991, with communication cut off and the last helicopter arriving on January 28, 1992. The genocide is remembered through the efforts of figures like Chingiz Mustafaev, who documented the atrocities, and national heroes like Allahverdi Bagirov, who saved prisoners.
On the night of February 25–26, 1992, Armenian forces attacked Khojaly. The city was assaulted from three sides, forcing the population to flee into the forests along the Gargar River. Many were killed by Armenian forces during the escape. Khojaly had a population of 2,000–4,000, including several hundred defenders. The city's defense was carried out by Azerbaijani volunteers, police, and army personnel.
The attack was planned by the leadership of the Armenian separatist regime in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. Refugees reported that Soviet soldiers from this regiment participated in the attack, with some refusing to follow orders and remaining in Karabakh. Armenian forces claimed that the regiment’s vehicles fired at the city but did not enter.
Khojaly began being shelled at 11:00 PM on February 25, targeting defense points. Infantry units entered the city between 1:00 AM and 4:00 AM on February 26. The Khojaly garrison’s resistance was quickly crushed, and the city was heavily damaged by artillery fire. By 7:00 AM, the last defense point was destroyed. As the attack began, many residents fled the city, heading toward Agdam or along the riverbed to the northeast.
Most civilians fled, while approximately 200–300 people remained in their homes or basements. The exact number of civilians killed in the attack is unclear, with conflicting reports. Many of the refugees fled without their belongings, in light clothing, and suffered from frostbite. Some groups of refugees, including armed individuals from the garrison, were fired upon and killed while trying to escape.
Survivors who reached Agdam reported that some were captured by Armenian forces in Pirjamal and Nakhchivanik villages, and many of these captives were later killed. The horrific attack led to significant loss of life, with many freezing to death or being killed during their escape.
The bodies of refugees killed while fleeing Khojaly were filmed during Azerbaijani operations to transport them to Agdam by helicopter. The footage shows bodies scattered over a wide area, including women, elderly people, and children, along with soldiers in uniform. Given the difficult terrain, it is estimated that the refugees took about seven to eight hours to reach the massacre site. They were likely subjected to gunfire early in the morning.
Over four days, around 200 bodies were brought to Agdam. Forensic examinations of 181 bodies (130 men, 51 women, including 13 children) revealed that 151 died from gunshot wounds, 20 from shrapnel, and 10 from blunt force trauma. Some bodies showed signs of mutilation, including scalps being removed and at least one decapitation. Authorities of the "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic" reported that 120–130 bodies were brought to Agdam with their approval, and 96 bodies were buried in Agdam, while others were returned to their families.
The Armenian armed groups justified the killing of civilians in the "liberated corridor" by claiming that armed individuals among the refugees fired at Armenian posts and provoked return fire. However, refugees reported that the Armenians initiated the shooting every time. Some groups of refugees traveling via a second route were also fired upon. In Agdam’s medical wagon, nearly all the victims, including defenders, were documented, with many suffering from frostbite and gunshot wounds.
It is important to note that deaths were not solely due to gunfire; many refugees also died from frostbite during their escape through the mountains. One woman reported losing three children to frostbite. The Khojaly Refugee Assistance Commission helped 476 families of martyrs, according to a March 26, 1992, report.
Conditions in the Khankendi detention center, where Khojaly residents and Azerbaijani armed groups were held, were reportedly poor. Detainees showed signs of malnutrition and exhaustion, and many were beaten regularly. Observers were only allowed to examine some of the prisoners.
The head of the detention center, Major Khachaturyan, prohibited even brief one-on-one conversations with the prisoners, allowing such interactions only once by chance. According to statements from Khojaly residents and city defenders who were captured and later exchanged, they were subjected to beatings. Many testimonies revealed that while women and children were generally not beaten (unlike the men), there were also reports of sexual violence, including cases involving minors, as confirmed by doctors in Baku and Agdam.
Allahverdi Bağırov played a pivotal role in removing the bodies of those killed during the Khojaly massacre from the battlefield and facilitating the exchange of Azerbaijani prisoners for Armenian prisoners and bodies. Through Armenian Colonel Vitali Balasanyan, he managed to rescue 1,003 Khojaly prisoners from Armenian captivity within three days. Bağırov would transport Armenian prisoners in buses and hand them over to the authorities. At the mosque in Agdam, he wrapped the bodies of the victims in shrouds before burying them. Azerbaijani prisoners were handed over at the Qarağacı cemetery in Agdam. Bağırov’s negotiations with Vitali Balasanyan allowed military operators Seyidağa Mövsümlü and Çingiz Mustafayev to capture footage of the events in Khojaly.
Collection of the bodies
During the siege of Khojaly, the inhabitants of the town fled toward the mountains and forests rather than Agdam, as Armenian armed groups had taken control of the heights near the road leading to Agdam. Since it was impossible to assist the Khojaly people from the direction of Asgaran, a group of fighters planned a mission to help them and began the Qaraqaya operation. This operation was prepared without orders from the higher command. During the days of the Khojaly massacre, Qaraqaya was under Armenian control. Only on the morning of February 26, after learning from the survivors who escaped Khojaly, did local battalions in Agdam begin to liberate Qaraqaya from the Armenian forces to rescue the civilian population. After this, the civilians fleeing Khojaly were rescued in the direction of Agdam’s Şelli village. As a result of the Qaraqaya operation, around 200 people were freed from captivity, and more than 100 bodies were brought to Agdam. A bit farther from Qaraqaya, in the direction of Asgaran, the bodies of Khojaly residents began to be found. These areas were under Armenian control.
The retrieval of the bodies of many Khojaly victims left behind was carried out through negotiations between Allahverdi Bagirov, one of the commanders of the Agdam battalion, and Vitali Balasanyan, the commander of the Asgaran battalion. Two days after the tragedy, Bagirov went to a checkpoint on the Asgaran road and, after negotiations with the enemy, met with Balasanyan. He informed him that the Azerbaijani side needed to collect the bodies and also make a film (at that time, Bagirov was accompanied by Seyidaga Movsumov, a military operator from the Ministry of Defense). Initially, Vitali disagreed with filming, but after Bagirov’s insistence, he agreed on the condition that two Armenian soldiers would follow the Azerbaijanis until the end and that no filming would be allowed without their permission.
After agreeing, they got into Armenian vehicles and headed toward Khojaly. Two trucks were also accompanying them, containing a group of fighters from the Khojaly self-defense battalion tasked with collecting the bodies. Upon reaching the Asgaran bridge, near the Asgaran fortress, they found that the area around the bridge was filled with human corpses. Most of them had been beheaded, had their eyes gouged out, or had their faces skinned. The people had been killed in a brutal manner. Despite Movsumov’s attempts, filming was not allowed. Azerbaijani fighters began collecting the bodies. Among the dead were many infants, girls, and elderly people. Some of the bodies had ropes and wires tied to their feet and had been dragged behind vehicles.
A bit further ahead, they found the bodies of many Azerbaijani fighters who had been killed in combat. Among them was the body of Elif Hajiyev. The Armenians did not recognize Elif’s body initially because his uniform had fallen over his face, and if they had recognized him, they would not have allowed it to be taken. The Armenians were also looking for the bodies of certain individuals, such as Aqil Quliyev. When the Armenians asked Movsumov if the body belonged to Aqil Quliyev, Movsumov knowingly lied, saying it was not his. Just ahead of Elif Hajiyev’s body, they found the body of an elderly man whose ears had been cut off. In another place, an entire family—from a child to an adult—had been killed. An elderly couple had been tied together with wire; the man’s skull cap was removed and crushed, and the woman’s ears and nose had been cut off. Seyidaga Movsumov tried to film everything he saw. The bodies were scattered from the banks of the Kargar River to the mountains. When the fighters reached the Kargar River, they saw that the Armenians had dumped a truckload of bodies from a bridge into the river.
The Anniversary
The anniversary of the Khojaly tragedy is commemorated annually on February 26 as a day of remembrance for the victims of one of the bloodiest chapters of the Karabakh war. On this day, various events take place, including ceremonies of laying flowers at memorials to the victims, rallies, protests, and prayers. In the capital city of Baku and other cities across the country, rallies are organized where government officials, public figures, and relatives of the victims deliver speeches. Memorial events are also held in schools and universities, where students learn about the events related to Khojaly to preserve the memory of the tragedy.
In Baku, the President of Azerbaijan traditionally lays a wreath in front of the "Monument to the Mothers' Cry" (a memorial dedicated to the victims of Khojaly). This ceremony is a significant part of the commemoration, as it honors the lives lost and acknowledges the grief of the victims’ families. The "Mothers' Cry" monument symbolizes the pain of mothers who lost their children and loved ones during the massacre. The President's participation in this ceremony reflects the importance of remembering the tragedy at the highest level of state leadership.
Additionally, on this day, various cultural and informational activities are organized in Azerbaijan, such as exhibitions, screenings of documentary films, and the distribution of materials about the events of Khojaly, to raise awareness in the global community about the tragedy.
(If you possess specialized knowledge and wish to contribute, please reach out to us at opinions@news.az).
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