Yerevan: As Armenians leave the recently liberated Nagorno-Karabakh territories, it has gradually become evident that the only thing left behind is uninhabitable ruins, with no proper infrastructure. Still, longing for this homecoming for decades, displaced Azerbaijanis look forward to returning to their land, eager to launch a new start.
Residents of Aghdam, which was occupied by Armenia for 27 years, said Saturday it had been turned into a ruined city with almost every building damaged since the Armenian Army withdrew on Nov. 20.
About 143,000 Azerbaijanis once lived in the city, but it now consists of poorly maintained roads and demolished buildings.
The double-minaret mosque, which was built in the 19th century, is the only building in Aghdam whose main structure remains intact. But it is in a very poor and neglected condition.
The destruction by Armenians in Aghdam during the occupation was described in the foreign press as the “Hiroshima of the Caucasus.”
Relations between the former Soviet republics of Azerbaijan and Armenia have been tense since 1991 when the Armenian military occupied Nagorno-Karabakh, a territory recognized as part of Azerbaijan, and seven adjacent regions.
New clashes erupted on Sept. 27, and the Armenian Army continued attacks on civilians and Azerbaijani forces, even violating humanitarian cease-fire agreements for 44 days.
Baku liberated several cities and nearly 300 settlements and villages from the Armenian occupation during this time.On Nov. 10, the two countries signed a Russia-brokered agreement to end fighting and work toward a comprehensive resolution.
The truce is seen as a victory for Azerbaijan and a defeat for Armenia.
An estimated 600,000 Azerbaijanis were displaced in the 1990s war that left the Nagorno-Karabakh region occupied by Armenia.
Adil Sharifov, 62, who left his hometown in 1992 during the first war and lives in Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, knows he will find similar devastation if he returns to the city of Jabrayil, which he longs to do.
Jabrayil is one of the outlying areas regained by Azerbaijani troops before the recent fighting ended. Soon after it was taken, one of Sharifov’s cousins went there and told him the city was destroyed, including the large house with an orchard where Sharifov’s family once lived.
Nonetheless, “The day when I return there will be the greatest happiness for me,” he said to The Associated Press (AP). For years, he said, his family had followed reports about Jabrayil on the internet.
They knew the destruction was terrible, but Sharifov’s late mother retained a desperate hope that their house had been spared and held onto the keys. – Agencies
