Today marks the 31st anniversary of the massacre perpetrated by the Baku authorities against the civilian population in Maragha Canton of the Martakert region of the Republic of Artsakh. The Maragha massacre was an unprecedented war crime committed with the motive of hatred towards Armenians, the aim of which was the destruction of the Armenian population.

In 1992, on April 10, after several hours of bombing, the armed forces of the Baku authorities invaded Maragha. By that time, the majority of the population had been evacuated, but those who remained in the settlement were subjected to inhuman torture and murder. Artsakh self-defense forces managed to liberate Maragha, but two weeks later Azerbaijani troops attacked again and committed new crimes against the inhabitants who returned to bury their relatives.

The massacre of the Armenian population of Maragha was another manifestation of the ongoing policy of ethnic cleansing of Armenians by the Baku authorities, which was carried out in 1988-1991, in Sumgait, Baku and other settlements, then in northern Artsakh and continues to this day. The mass massacres of the civilian population of Maragha are a timeless crime against humanity and civilization and must be condemned by the international community, and the organizers and perpetrators of this crime must be punished.

The Government of Western Armenia expresses its condolences to the relatives of the victims of the Maragha massacre and to all the Armenian people, as this is our common tragedy, which we have witnessed for hundreds of years in the murderous Turkish Armenian script. We would like to remind you that the Genocide is an internationally punishable crime against humanity. So far, no advocacy organization of the relatives of the victims from Baku or Northern Artsakh or the refugees has taken the case to the European Court of Human Rights and waiting for the condemnation by the international courts just for the sake of humanity is useless rhetoric.

 We have to start the process ourselves on the basis of the collected facts and claims, as the government of Western Armenia is doing. Once again, we remind you that the judicial process has already started according to the procedure based on our demands in the case of the Shushi refugees. We are ready to accept all the documents and applications regarding the massacres and displacements that have taken place so far and to start the judicial process. We are waiting for your applications.