Azerbaijani MP and popular singer Zaynab Khanlarova stated in a parliamentary session on Friday that Azerbaijan has to go to war with Armenia and liberate the occupied territories.
“Let’s start the war, kill Armenians. Ours [Azeris] are being killed anyway… See how many losses we have had during the ceasefire”, MP Khanlarova said at a session held on the Khojaly massacre.
The Khojaly massacre was one of the bloodiest incidents of the Nagorno-Karabakh war between Armenia and Azerbaijan.
613 Azeri citizens, including 116 women, 63 children and 70 elderly people were killed leaving 487 others were injured, according to Azerbaijani figures. Armenia disputes the number of deaths.
She also stated that though she is a bad judge of the peace process, she noted that diplomatic efforts and negotiations over the past 25 years have not produced any results.
“What has changed after these years? Nothing. Let’s do a one-time war. Armenians have occupied our territory, our home. Who can say anything [bad]? We will be fighting for our own home”.
Her comments came on the eve of the 25
th
anniversary of the Khojaly massacre annually commemorated on the state level across Azerbaijan. The massacre took place on Feb. 25-26, 1992, and is one of the most controversial incidents of the Nagorno-Karabakh war.
Meanwhile, Speaker of Parliament Oktay Asadov stated that the Khojaly massacre was perpetrated not based on the power of Armenia but by the force of the powers backing Yerevan.
“But Azerbaijan has great strength under the leadership of President Ilham Aliyev. We won’t be weeping and mourning anymore”, Asadov was quoted as saying by APA news agency.
Another deputy, Ganira Pashayeva, has suggested erecting a memorial for the victims of the massacre in Martyrs Lane so that foreigners can be informed while visiting the alley in the capital city of Baku.
During the parliamentary session, Azerbaijani lawmakers were assigned to lobby for the Khojaly massacre on various international platforms.
