Azernews.Az

By Sara Rajabova

The Peruvian Parliament has approved a decision on the Khojaly genocide following the discussions.

The document briefs about the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh and the Khojaly genocide committed by the Armenian vandals in 1992.

According to the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry, the country's legislators expressed full respect for the sovereignty of the Azerbaijani and Armenian peoples. They urge the governments of these countries to rapidly agree on the format which will put an end to the conflict.

"Following the attack, assessed as a genocide act and fully documented, Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent regions were occupied by the Armenian armed forces," the document said.

The document reads that the four resolutions of the UN Security Council on Nagorno-Karabakh have not been fulfilled by Armenia yet and notes the tens of billions of dollars of damage caused to Azerbaijan as a result of the conflict.

The legislators also draw attention to the fact that also the cease-fire was reached between Azerbaijan and Armenia in 1994, the violation of cease-fire regime continues and such cases have intensified since 2003.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 per cent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts.

Late into the night of February 25, 1992, the town of Khojaly, situated within the administrative borders of the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, came under intensive fire from the towns of Khankendi and Askeran already occupied by Armenian armed forces. The Armenian forces, supported by the ex-Soviet 366th regiment, completed the surrounding of the town already isolated due to ethnic cleansing of the Azerbaijani population of the neighboring regions. The joint forces occupied the town, which was ruined by heavy artillery shelling.

Thousands of fleeing civilians were ambushed by the Armenian forces. Punitive teams of the so-called Nagorno-Karabakh defense army reached the unprotected civilians to slaughter them, mutilating some of the bodies. 613 civilians, including 106 women, 70 elderly and 83 children, were killed in the massacre. A total of 1,000 civilians were disabled. Eight families were exterminated, and 25 children lost both parents, while 130 children lost one parent. Moreover, 1,275 innocent people were taken hostage, while the fate of 150 remains unknown.