Baku pogroms marked the beginning of new monstrous stage in Azerbaijan’s genocidal policy towards Armenians – Artsakh MFA

Baku pogroms, along with the 1988 massacre of Armenians in Sumgait, marked the beginning of another monstrous stage in Azerbaijan’s genocidal policy towards Armenians, Artsakh’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Thirty-three years ago, murders, robberies, violence and atrocities committed with exceptional cruelty continued for a whole week – from 13 to 20 January 1990. People who escaped death were subjected to organized deportation. According to various sources, between 150 and 300 people were killed as a result of this inhuman crime.

“Baku pogroms, along with the 1988 massacre of Armenians in Sumgait, marked the beginning of another monstrous stage in Azerbaijan’s genocidal policy towards Armenians. Pogroms and mass killings, widespread and systematic deportation of the Armenian population of the former Azerbaijan SSR, including operation “Ring” on the deportation of Armenians from the border villages of Artsakh in 1991, waging aggressive wars against the Republic of Artsakh in 1991-1994, in April 2016 and in September-November 2020, accompanied by war crimes committed by Azerbaijani armed forces, became manifestations of this policy. As a result of these criminal acts, thousands of people were killed, hundreds of thousands became victims of ethnic cleansing,” the Foreign Ministry said.

“Widespread and consistent propaganda of xenophobia against Armenians, accompanied by their dehumanization, encouragement of war crimes and crimes motivated by ethnic intolerance, became an integral part of Azerbaijan’s policy to exterminate Armenians in their historical homeland. Specialized international organizations regularly noted the extreme manifestations of Armenophobia in Azerbaijan. Unfortunately, no effective steps have been taken to combat them. As a result, a fertile ground has developed in Azerbaijan for the commission and justification of crimes against humanity,” it added.

According to the Ministry, impunity for both the Baku pogroms and the previous and subsequent mass crimes led to a situation where Azerbaijan considers it acceptable to blockade the 120,000 population of Artsakh and create conditions for a humanitarian catastrophe.

Lasting peace in the region cannot be achieved on the basis of the results of Baku’s genocidal policy. Such policy must be resolutely condemned and rejected by the international community, and the immediate lifting of the blockade of Artsakh, which has been going on for over a month, should become the first step to this end.