Azerbaijan, Baku, 25 February / Trend corr. J.Babayeva / About 40 activists of the Muasir Musavat party attempted to stage unsanctioned protest action in front of the UN Baku office on 25 February due to the Khojali tragedy.
On the night of 25 to 26 February 1992 the Azerbaijani settlement of Nagorno-Karabakh, Khojali, was occupied by Armenian separatists, with active participation of military personnel and army tanks of the 366th regiment of the Russian army. In a matter of several hours, more than 600 unarmed Azerbaijani citizens, including 106 women and 83 children, were brutally killed. The annihilation of the peaceful people continued for several days during which time the Armenians executed and killed prisoners, committed violence against women and children, cut off the heads of Azerbaijani military prisoners and had them hung up. During this crime, 487 people, including 76 juveniles were physically disabled and 1,275 people were taken prisoner. Despite the release of most of the prisoners, the fate of 150 people is still unknown.
Police did not permit the participants of the rally to make public slogans. Activists demanded recognition of the Khojali tragedy at an international level. A protest statement was read out by Farhad Aliyev, the party deputy chairman. The document was submitted to the UN Baku office.
Activists informed that they were planning to stage similar rallies in front of other international organizations in Baku.