By Azernews

By Akbar Mammadov

Mayor of Los Angeles Eric Garcetti has condemned the violence against Azerbaijani protesters who were attacked by Armenian nationalists in Los Angeles on July 21.

Seven Azerbaijanis and a police officer were injured when a violent group of Armenian protesters attacked a much smaller group of Azerbaijani counter-protesters outside of the building of the Consulate-General of Azerbaijan in Los-Angeles.

In a letter addressed to the Consulate-General, Garcetti said: “I was saddened to hear the events that took place outside of the Consulate of Azerbaijan on Tuesday, July 21. While I am unable to comment on an active LAPD investigation, I strongly condemn the actions of those who resorted to violence.”

The Mayor promised that the city will continue to work to ensure the safety of the Azerbaijani community in Los Angeles.

In the meantime, Consulate-General of Azerbaijan in Los-Angeles has revealed a video from the protest on July 21, that shows Armenians throwing cutting tools in front of Azerbaijani counter-protesters outside of the consulate.

Sharing the video in its official Facebook page on July 30, the consulate noted that some Armenian Dashnaks came to protest in front of the Consulate well-armed on July 21 to stage a provocation. By doing so, Armenian nationalists were hoping that Azerbaijanis would resort to violence.

“Here, is a Dashnak who was driving around Azerbaijanis repeatedly throwing a hammer, pliers, and other tools at them each time,” the consulate wrote.

It should be noted that the Los-Angeles Police Department (LAPD) is investigating the Armenian attack against Azerbaijanis in that protest as hate crime.

Armenians stepped up hate crimes against Azerbaijanis following the cross-border clashes initiated with Armenian forces firing artillery at Azerbaijani positions in Tovuz on July 12.

On July 22, police in Belgium arrested seventeen Armenians for attacking Azerbaijanis outside of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Belgium. The arrests come after a violent attack on Azerbaijanis outside of the Azerbaijani Embassy in Belgium on July 22 where Azerbaijan’s diplomatic mission and community members were attacked by Armenians who threw stones and sharp objects at them. Armenian hate groups also targeted Azerbaijanis separately, attacking them in large groups in different parts of Belgium. A graphic video of an Azerbaijan man being beaten and insulted by around ten Armenian men in Brussels went viral.