New memorial plaque for Azerbaijani prisoners unveiled in Germany

A memorial plaque dedicated to Azerbaijani prisoners captured during the Second World War, designed by the Azerbaijani Embassy in Germany in both Azerbaijani and German, was unveiled at the Bergen-Belsen Memorial Complex in Lohheide.

Nasimi Aghayev, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Germany, Hanna Naber, President of the State Parliament of Lower Saxony, Julia Willie Hamburg - Minister for Education of Lower Saxony, Elke Gryglewski, Managing Director of the Lower Saxony Memorials Foundation and Director of the Bergen-Belsen Memorial, as well as members of the Azerbaijani diaspora attended the unveiling ceremony, News.Az reports, citing local media.

Addressing the event, Ambassador Nasimi Aghayev noted that the previous two memorial plagues dedicated to the Azerbaijani compatriots were unveiled by the Azerbaijani Embassy in Dachau and Sachsenhausen Memorial Complexes in 2024 and 2025.

Nasimi Aghayev highlighted Azerbaijan’s unparalleled contributions to the victory over fascism. According to him, around 700,000 Azerbaijanis fought on the frontline, with more than 300,000 dying on the battlefield during World War II. He underscored that Azerbaijan was also instrumental on the home front, supplying 80 percent of the gasoline used by the Soviet Army.

Akim Jah, Head of the Research and Documentation Department and Rolf Keller, Member of the International Advisory Board of the Bergen Belsen Memorial Complex, described the installation of the plague as a tribute to the Azerbaijani soldiers who died or were tortured in the camp.

Following the opening remarks, the participants laid wreaths at the plague and paid tribute to the killed prisoners.

A total of around 120,000 people from many different European countries were imprisoned in the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp. Of these prisoners, 52,000 perished in the camp itself or died from the effects of their imprisonment immediately after the liberation.

News.Az 

By Ulviyya Salmanli