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http://www.israelnationalnews.com – Arye Gut
Once strategic Shusha fell to Ajerbaijan, Armenia agreed to a Nov 10 peace treaty, policed by Putin’s forces. Azeri version.Op-ed
Background: The 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement is an armistice agreement that ended the 2020 Nagomo-Karabakh war, signed on 9 November by the President of Azerbaijand, the Prime Minister of Armenia and Russian President Vladimir Putin, ending all hostilities from November 10.
At least 13 Azerbaijani citizens including two children were killed and more than 40 others were wounded in Armenia’s onslaught upon Ganja, the second largest city in Azerbaijan in October. Ganja became Azerbaijan’s Sderot, as civilians and other non-military targets were being constantly fired upon by the Armenian Armed Forces.
Whole houses collapsed because of the Armenian attack. Children are left orphans, and many others are crippled for life. Moreover, like Sderot, the city of Ganja is located on the territory of Azerbaijan, far from the front lines. Nevertheless, unfortunately, in too many media outlets around the world, Azerbaijan and not Armenia is declared to be the aggressor, despite the fact that it is Azerbaijan that has been a victim of Armenian aggression for more than 30 years.
It is true that Azerbaijan was forced to react to the Armenian aggression. However, Azerbaijan did not attack the territory of neighboring Armenia; Azerbaijan only seeks to regain its territorial integrity, which rightfully belongs to it. According to four UN Security Council resolutions – 822, 853,874, 884, the Nagorno-Karabakh region is an internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan.
In the early 1990s, Armenia, with the military-political and financial support of Russia, illegally occupied the Nagorno-Karabakh region, carrying out ethnic cleansing against the Azerbaijani population. One million Azerbaijani citizens were forced to leave their homes with nothing but clothes on their backs, as Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent Azerbaijani regions were captured, destroyed, and occupied by Armenia, 20% of Azerbaijan’s territory.
During one of the most brutal acts of ethnic cleansing during that war, Armenia committed an act of genocide in the Azerbaijani city of Khojaly overnight, and as a result of the Armenian armed forces, 613 Azerbaijanis were massacred, among them 106 women, 83 young children and 70 elderly people. 487 people were crippled, 1,275 civilians – old people, children, women – were caught, captured, and subjected to unprecedented torment, insults, and humiliation. The deliberate mass extermination of the civilian population of the city of Khojaly had been carried out for only one reason – because they were all Azerbaijanis.
I ask myself a question: how do those Armenian fascists differ from the German fascists of the 1940s of the 20th century, who exterminated six million representatives of my people? From ISIS? The answer is obvious – they don’t. .
All the events around the terrible February 1992 night in Khojaly are real events with documentary and video materials, testimonies of witnesses, foreign journalists and experts bearing witness, who were at that moment in that Azerbaijani city. The only reason these Azerbaijanis were subjected to such cruelty is because they were Azerbaijanis.
The former President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, who personally organized and participated in the act of genocide in Khojaly, did not hesitate to tell the truth about the events on that terrible February 26 night in 1992. In an interview with British journalist Thomas de Waal in connection with the Azerbaijani-Armenian, Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which was included in the book “Karabakh: Armenia and Azerbaijan on the path of peace and war,” Serzh Sargsyan answered the question about the Khojaly tragedy:
“Before Khojaly, Azerbaijanis thought that that we were joking with them. They believed that the Armenians were a people who would not be able to raise a hand against the civilian population. We managed to destroy this stereotype. And this is what happened.”
More than 1,000 people from Khojaly became disabled, as the Armenians raped, tortured, beheaded, burned and killed those who tried to flee the village. This is 1,000 people out of 1275 people taken prisoner by the Armenians. 26 children lost both parents to the massacre and 130 children lost one parent. Their property, which was left behind, was burned and plundered to the ground.
As the American rabbi, Israel Baruk, remarked: “Of the dead 56 people were killed with particular cruelty:” The Armenians even mutilated dead bodies.
The governments of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Honduras, Colombia, Czech Republic, Guatemala, Jordan, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Pakistan, Romania, Serbia and Sudan have officially condemned Armenia for the Khojaly genocide and demanded justice for the victims. Similarly, more than 20 US states have passed resolutions condemning the Khojaly massacre.
However, today the military-political and geopolitical situation is completely different … Already on the first day of escalation, September 27, the Azerbaijani Armed Forces managed to break through the defense of the Armenians and make a serious breakthrough. The strategic height of Murovdag was taken, and seven settlements were overrun, near the cities of Fizuli and Dzhabrail (Karakhanbeyli, Karvand, Horadiz, Ashagi Abdurahmanli, Yukhary Abdurakhmanli, Boyuk Marjanli, and Nyuzgar).
The next breakthrough happened on October 3. On this day, the Azerbaijanis seriously advanced under Jabarail (Mehdili, Chakhirli, Ashagi Maralyan, Sheiben, Guichag). In addition, control over the villages of Sugovushan and Talysh in the Terter region returned. On October 5, Azerbaijanis again succeeded in advancing in the Jabrail region. The villages of Shikhali Agaly, Saryjaly and Marza were returned.
In addition, on October 9, on the eve of the “humanitarian truce,” which the parties to the conflict agreed on in Moscow, and which was ignored, another major breakthrough was made. On this day, the Azerbaijanis returned under their control a number of settlements in different sectors of the front: Hadrut, Chaily, Yukhari Guzlyak, Gorazilli, Gishlag, Garajalli, Suleimanli, Efendilar, and others.
Armenian military and political leaders assumed that the war would go on as it was in previous conflicts, and Azerbaijan prepared for a new type of war in the 21st century. They have new tactics as well as a fresh new strategy, innovative weapons and technologies – advanced Israeli missiles, radars and electronic warfare equipment, avionics, computer systems and communications systems, surveillance and optics, reconnaissance equipment, information systems and cyber technologies, drones and maritime systems.
The Russian-made air defense systems, which are in service with Armenia, have shown their helplessness and absolute inconsistency in front of Western and Israeli weapons. The sky of Karabakh was soon completely captured by Azerbaijan.
Usually in video reports, you can see that the reconnaissance drone is hanging, no one is firing at it, then an attack drone flies up and strikes. The Azerbaijani army used the drone “kamikaze” IAI “Harop”, the Israeli company “MABAT”, which is a subdivision of the “Israel Aerospace Industries.” The peculiarity of this device is that when a target is detected, the device becomes a homing projectile, while it is capable of being in the air for quite a long time carrying out reconnaissance and monitoring, since with such a compact size it is equipped with an airborne radar, as well as a TV camera and a low-level thermal imager. It should be noted that the drone is not for one-time use and in case of cancellation of the task, it can return to the launch site. The weight of the device is 130 kg, the speed is up to 180 km / h, the time spent in the air is 6-8 hours, and the maximum range is up to 1000 km.
Azerbaijan drones destroy infrastructure, equipment and military gatherings. Therefore, the Armenians cannot concentrate the soldiers, since they quickly turn into an object for attack. Thus, the rear Armenia line is disorganized.
Taking into account the fact that the Armenian army is a perfect copy of the model of the Russian army and acts according to the model of Moscow, it can be assumed that official Moscow is also not ready for a new type of war. It is worth noting the fact that the Armenian army does not have stock combat drones, since their Moscow allies do not have them. Such drones are sold and supplied to Azerbaijan by such strategic and loyal allies as Israel and Turkey.
Strong and independent Azerbaijan had a new strategic goal – native Shusha. On May 8, 1992, with the support of the Russian 336th regiment, the Armenian troops managed to capture Shusha. As a result of the occupation of the city of Shusha and 30 villages of the Shusha region, 195 innocent civilians were killed, 165 were wounded and 58 people are still missing. More than 24,000 residents of Shusha were subjected to ethnic cleansing.
During the Karabakh war (started in 1991), many Shusha buildings were destroyed. In the framework of Armenia’s deliberate policy of destruction, plundering, desecration and embezzlement of the cultural and religious heritage of Azerbaijan in the occupied lands, in Shusha, alone, more than 170 architectural monuments, 160 cultural and historical monuments, mosques, and rare manuscripts were destroyed and subjected to vandalism. The “Imarat of Panah khan complex” and library, Khan Palace and Caravansary, Yukhari and Ashagi Govharaga, Saatli Mosques, Mausoleum of Vagif, Natavan’s House and many others are among them.
For 28 years, this golden jewel of Azerbaijan is in the hands of the Armenian occupation. For the Azerbaijanis, who are always proud of the fact that they are at home among the promoters of the arts, culture and education – Uzeyir Hajibeyov and Rashid Behbudov, Natavan and Vagif, Khan Shushisky and Badalbeyli, Garyagdy and Niazi, Bulbul and Mehmandarov and many more, it has a special dimension. They were born into an impregnable fortress, and, as pure mountain streams flowed through the valleys, and expanses of Azerbaijan, they built and created beauty.
Shusha was lonely, orphaned, tortured, abused … Shusha definitely missed those old days when the air was beautiful with the Azeri music of “Bayati-Shiraz.” Since the present inhabitants of the city are separated from Shusha, the cradle of Azerbaijani music every night suffers from indescribably horrible and vivid dreams. Very rarely, Shusha is said today in its native language, it is pretty, insanely beautiful, true, true to its indescribable beauty. In addition, Shusha’s beautiful and melodic singing and her voice echoes and stirs our souls, when we remember the leading figures of Azerbaijani music.
Today, native Shusha is not alone. It is at home, but among others, who are destroying everything around it so that people can forgot her vivid and unforgettable past. It feels the strong and indescribable pain of loss and nostalgia, which moves the heart of its natives. This bothered her all the time the invaders are trying to erase traces of everything Azerbaijani. The Armenians neglected her historic truth when they built on her ruins Armenian Gregorian Churches and changed the name of the city.
Many years Shusha has seen these invaders seeking to destroy all its native Azerbaijani heritage. Shusha was crying because aliens destroyed museums, monuments of art, sculpture, desecrated and torn Azerbaijani cemeteries and destroyed the Azerbaijani Shusha soul so that it has forgotten how to glorify its Azerbaijani history. However, Shusha never forget its heritage and Azerbaijan, as Azeri people will not forget this great city – Shusha.
I know that Shusha is crying, remembering the bright Azerbaijani history, the courage and bravery of the sons and daughters of Azerbaijan, who gave their lives for their Motherland. Do not cry, the Azerbaijani people have no right to be weak. Azerbaijan will return to this wonderful and historic city and free it from the inhuman oppression of the Armenian occupation. Azerbaijanis will never accept the loss of Shusha, Azerbaijanis must return to Shusha! And it will be very soon and Shusha will soon be in the hands of Azerbaijanis!!
Note: The city fell to Azerbaijani forces in early November.
Arye Gut is an Executive Director of the Baku International Multiculturalism Centre’s Branch in Israel and is a political analyst on Israeli TV regarding Turkish-Israel, Israeli-Iranian and Azerbaijani-Israeli relations.