Sabina Aliyeva, Commissioner for Human Rights of the Republic of Azerbaijan (Ombudsman), issued a statement on March 31 - Genocide Day of Azerbaijanis.

According to the information given to APA by the Ombudsman Office, the statement says that March 31, as one of the manifestations of the Armenian vandalism committed against all humanity, entered our history as the Genocide Day of Azerbaijanis.

During these bloody events in 1918, tens of thousands of peaceful Azerbaijanis were killed by the continuous genocide and aggressive policy of Armenian nationalists only because of their ethnicity.

People were burned alive in their homes by the Armenian-Bolshevik units, and were also killed with special torture and cruelty.

The genocide of Azerbaijanis was carried out with special cruelty in the city of Baku, in the cities and districts of the Baku governorate, as well as in the districts of Shamakhi, Guba, Karabakh, Zangezur, Nakhchivan, Lankaran and other regions. mosques were destroyed by cannon fire.

110 villages of Shamakhi district, 167 villages of Guba district, more than 150 villages of Karabakh, 115 villages of Zangezur district, 98 villages of Kars province were destroyed and burned, including women, children and elderly people, during this genocide committed by Armenian nationalists purposefully and with the most brutal methods. Tens of thousands of civilians were killed because of their ethnic and religious affiliation.

After the establishment of Soviet power in Armenia and Azerbaijan, with the support of this regime, another part of Azerbaijani lands, including Western Zangezur, the mountainous part of Gazakh district and some villages of Nakhchivan, was given to Armenia, as a result of which its territory was expanded many times and increased from 9 thousand to 29 thousand square kilometers.

Genocide crimes committed by Armenians are based on centuries-long bitter hatred against Azerbaijanis, discriminatory policies and completely unfounded territorial claims.

Despite being subjected to genocides, our people, connected to their national and moral values, historical roots, land and homeland, preserved their national memory and identity, and as a result of solidarity, our independence was restored.

After the return to power of National Leader Heydar Aliyev, it was possible to convey to the international community the terrible scale of the genocidal policy and ethnic cleansing that our people suffered throughout history, at the same time to investigate the committed crimes and give a political and legal assessment of the events that occurred.

In 2007, a mass grave accidentally discovered during construction excavations in the city of Guba clearly proves the genocide crimes committed by Armenians in 1918.

The Guba Genocide Memorial Complex was established by the relevant Decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev in order to communicate the historical facts of the genocide crimes and inhuman acts committed by the Armenian nationalists against the civilian population to the world community and perpetuate the memory of the victims of the genocide.

Armenia's territorial claims against our country, policy of aggression, as well as the war crimes committed against our people became more acute at the end of the 20th century, and twenty percent of the lands recognized as sovereign territory of Azerbaijan at the international level remained under occupation for nearly 30 years.

In 2020, those territories were freed from occupation by our army and the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan was restored.

Armenia has grossly violated the norms and principles of international law, repeatedly committed crimes of genocide against the civilian population, destroyed, looted and insulted our historical and religious monuments.

It should be noted with regret that although there are sufficient proofs and evidences about the acts of genocide committed by Armenians against Azerbaijanis, there has not yet been an adequate response to these crimes against peace and humanity at the international level.

I call on the world community and influential international organizations to recognize the crimes of ethnic cleansing and genocide committed by Armenians against Azerbaijanis throughout history as genocide by giving a political and legal assessment and to support the provision of justice."

Statement to the UN Secretary-General, the UN Security Council, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN Human Rights Council, UNICEF, UNESCO, the European Union, the Council of Europe , to the leaders of the OSCE, International and European Ombudsmen Institutes, the Asian Ombudsmen Association, the Association of Ombudsmen and National Human Rights Institutions of the Turkish States, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Association of Ombudsmen of the member states of this organization, the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the European Children's Rights Ombudsmen Network, the International Peace Bureau, ombudsmen of various countries and national human rights institutions, the embassies of the Republic of Azerbaijan in foreign countries and in our republic,It was sent to the diaspora organizations of Azerbaijan, as well as to various religious communities and confessions.