Azerbaijani MFA releases statement on January 20 - National Mourning Day
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan issued a statement in connection with January 20 – the Day of National Mourning, News.Az reports citing press service of Ministry.
The document states:
"The anniversary of the bloody massacre committed by the former USSR in order to suppress the national liberation movement of the Azerbaijani people on the night of January 19-20 35 years ago is annually celebrated in our country as January 20 - Day of National Sorrow.
On the Day of National Mourning – January 20, which is a day of deep sorrow, as well as great pride in our modern history, we remember with deep gratitude all our martyrs who gave their lives for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country.
The discriminatory policy of the former Soviet government towards our country and people in the 80s of the last century, when, in order to justify the continuation of Armenia's unfounded territorial claims against Azerbaijan, as well as the mass deportation of Azerbaijanis from their historical lands to the territory of present-day Armenia, such provocations as the "Sumgait events" were prepared and committed, led to the rise of the national liberation movement of the Azerbaijani people.
In order to suppress the people's movement of Azerbaijan, which was fighting for its independence and territorial integrity, on the night of January 19-20, 1990, in Baku, Sumgait, Lankaran and Neftchala, units of the Soviet Army, special forces, and a contingent of internal troops committed a brutal massacre of the civilian population. As a result of the military aggression of January 20, one of the most serious crimes against humanity of the last century, committed against all norms of international law against innocent people, including children, women and the elderly, 150 civilians were killed, 744 were seriously injured, and 4 went missing.
Despite the complexity of the era and the measures taken by the former Soviet authorities to prevent the dissemination of facts about the events of January 20, bringing the brutal massacre to the attention of the international community immediately the day after the tragedy is associated with the name of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev. After the restoration of our independence and the return of the National Leader to power in our country, a number of crimes committed against our people, including the tragedy of January 20, were given a political and legal assessment, and in connection with this, in March 1994, the Milli Majlis adopted a resolution "On the tragic events that took place in Baku on January 20, 1990".
Despite the fact that the tragedy of January 20 was planned and carried out with the aim of suppressing the national resistance of the Azerbaijani people, this bloody massacre became a turning point in the history of the Movement for Independence, Solidarity and National Liberation of our people, and also marked the beginning of the inevitable collapse of the USSR, which they tried to postpone for a long time.
The unity and will of our people, who survived the most difficult days and went through the most difficult tests of history, formed the basis for the brilliant victory of the glorious Azerbaijani Army, led by the victorious Supreme Commander-in-Chief, in the 44-day Patriotic War, which ended with ensuring our territorial integrity, as well as the basis for ending the occupation and conflict through anti-terrorist operations on September 19-20, 2023, which led to the full restoration of our sovereignty.
On the 35th anniversary of the January 20 tragedy, which left a deep mark on the history of our independence, we proudly honor our martyrs who gave their lives for our state and territorial integrity, and wish health to those of our citizens who lost it on this path!
Long live Azerbaijan!
The document states:
"The anniversary of the bloody massacre committed by the former USSR in order to suppress the national liberation movement of the Azerbaijani people on the night of January 19-20 35 years ago is annually celebrated in our country as January 20 - Day of National Sorrow.
On the Day of National Mourning – January 20, which is a day of deep sorrow, as well as great pride in our modern history, we remember with deep gratitude all our martyrs who gave their lives for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country.
The discriminatory policy of the former Soviet government towards our country and people in the 80s of the last century, when, in order to justify the continuation of Armenia's unfounded territorial claims against Azerbaijan, as well as the mass deportation of Azerbaijanis from their historical lands to the territory of present-day Armenia, such provocations as the "Sumgait events" were prepared and committed, led to the rise of the national liberation movement of the Azerbaijani people.
In order to suppress the people's movement of Azerbaijan, which was fighting for its independence and territorial integrity, on the night of January 19-20, 1990, in Baku, Sumgait, Lankaran and Neftchala, units of the Soviet Army, special forces, and a contingent of internal troops committed a brutal massacre of the civilian population. As a result of the military aggression of January 20, one of the most serious crimes against humanity of the last century, committed against all norms of international law against innocent people, including children, women and the elderly, 150 civilians were killed, 744 were seriously injured, and 4 went missing.
Despite the complexity of the era and the measures taken by the former Soviet authorities to prevent the dissemination of facts about the events of January 20, bringing the brutal massacre to the attention of the international community immediately the day after the tragedy is associated with the name of the National Leader Heydar Aliyev. After the restoration of our independence and the return of the National Leader to power in our country, a number of crimes committed against our people, including the tragedy of January 20, were given a political and legal assessment, and in connection with this, in March 1994, the Milli Majlis adopted a resolution "On the tragic events that took place in Baku on January 20, 1990".
Despite the fact that the tragedy of January 20 was planned and carried out with the aim of suppressing the national resistance of the Azerbaijani people, this bloody massacre became a turning point in the history of the Movement for Independence, Solidarity and National Liberation of our people, and also marked the beginning of the inevitable collapse of the USSR, which they tried to postpone for a long time.
The unity and will of our people, who survived the most difficult days and went through the most difficult tests of history, formed the basis for the brilliant victory of the glorious Azerbaijani Army, led by the victorious Supreme Commander-in-Chief, in the 44-day Patriotic War, which ended with ensuring our territorial integrity, as well as the basis for ending the occupation and conflict through anti-terrorist operations on September 19-20, 2023, which led to the full restoration of our sovereignty.
On the 35th anniversary of the January 20 tragedy, which left a deep mark on the history of our independence, we proudly honor our martyrs who gave their lives for our state and territorial integrity, and wish health to those of our citizens who lost it on this path!
Long live Azerbaijan!
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