November 9, 2021 marked the one-year anniversary of the end of the Second Karabakh War. Azerbaijanis worldwide took to the streets to rejoice at the momentous liberation of a large swath of Azerbaijani territories that had been illegally occupied by Armenian forces since the early 1990s. The 44-day war ended with signing a Russian-brokered ceasefire agreement, which in addition to liberation of several districts from occupying forces also made Armenia withdraw from three large districts adjacent to the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO). Approximately 7,000 soldiers died on both sides, with continuing casualties among Azerbaijani military and civilians due to border and sniper shootings, and landmines that had been planted throughout the region by Armenian forces in the last three decades. Eight cities and 286 villages were liberated, with many more handed back to Azerbaijan through border demarcations. Culturally significant cities of Shusha, as well as Agdam (now symbolically called the ‘Hiroshima of the Caucasus’), Jabrail, Fuzuli, Gubadly, Lachin, and Zangilan were victoriously liberated, although the region now stands in complete ruin. Once-thriving cities were turned into eerie ghost towns due to landmines with no sign of life for hundreds of miles. Carpets and other cultural relics of monetary worth had been smuggled out, while private property has been looted and stripped of everything valuable. Buildings of cultural heritage have been demolished, mosques were defiled by willful neglect and turned into sheds by raising pigs and cows inside, while the rest were outright destroyed. https://caspianvibes.hflip.co/9c3507ea72.html
Authors: Dr. Roza Eynula, Aidin Eminov
Publish Year: 2022
