Ilham Aliyev: Khojaly genocide perpetrators held accountable in court

"The thugs who committed the Khojaly genocide and whose hands were soaked in the blood of the Azerbaijani people had to be held to account in court," Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev stated at a meeting with representatives of the Khojaly district community as part of the opening ceremony of the Khojaly Genocide Memorial in Khojaly town on February 26, Report informs.

"It is precisely as a result of our persistent efforts that about 20 countries have officially recognized the Khojaly genocide as an act of genocide, and this process is continuing," President Aliyev said.

"The impact of the 'Justice for Khojaly!' campaign has been enormous. Let me repeat that we demanded justice. Unfortunately, however, international organizations and leading countries of the world remained indifferent to our tragedy. I want to state again that they were trying to cover up this bloody crime perpetrated by the Armenian state. But we were moving towards justice step by step. The fact that the Khojaly genocide has been officially recognized by about 20 countries was one step; the Patriotic War and our glorious Victory were the second step, and the liberation of the city of Khojaly two and a half years ago was one of the last steps. Finally, the last step was the recent trial of war criminals in Baku. The thugs who committed the Khojaly genocide and whose hands were soaked in the blood of the Azerbaijani people had to be held to account in court," he noted.