Turkish delegation visits Armenian-destroyed residential complex in Ganja

By Azernews

By Vafa Ismayilova

A delegation led by Turkish Supreme Court Prosecutor-General Bekir Sahin has visited Armenian-destroyed residential quarters in Azerbaijan's second-largest city Ganja, the Azerbaijani Prosecutor-General's Office reported on June 2.

The delegation members reviewed the consequences of Armenia’s war crimes against the Azerbaijani civilians and commemorated the victims of the Armenian terror. They were briefed that Ganja, which is located far from a war zone, was five times subjected to heavy artillery and missile strikes during the 44-day war in autumn 2020. As a result of missile attacks, the city's historical and religious monuments, educational and medical institutions were damaged.

As part of the visit, the guests reviewed the conditions created in the administrative building of the Ganja city prosecutor's office, and they were provided with detailed information on the activity of the prosecutor's office.

As a result of Armenia's targeted missile attacks on Azerbaijani cities outside of the war zone (Ganja, Barda, Tartar and others), 100 Azerbaijani civilians, including 12 children were killed and over 400 were wounded. International human rights watchdogs Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch also verified the use of banned cluster bombs and rockets by Armenia in its attacks against Azerbaijani cities.

The clashes between Armenia and Azerbaijan resumed after Armenia launched large-scale attacks on Azerbaijani forces and civilians on September 27. 

The trilateral peace deal signed by the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders on November 10, 2020, ended the 30-year-old conflict between Baku and Yerevan over Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh region that along with the seven adjacent regions came under the occupation of Armenian armed forces in the war in the 1990s. 

On January 11, 2021, the Azerbaijani, Russian and Armenian leaders signed the second statement since the end of the 44-day war. The newly-signed statement is set to implement clause 9 of the November 2020 statement related to the unblocking of all economic and transport communications in the region.