The village of Garadaghli is located in Khojavend district of Republic of Azerbaijan (previously called Martuni district within the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic which was abolished on November 26, 1991). The overall population of the village was relatively small accounting to a little more than 800 residents.
The residents of the village were primarily engaged in agricultural activities and lived a stable life until February of 1988 when the Armenians in Armenian SSR and Karabakh region of Azerbaijan SSR laid claims on the region demanding transfer of NKAO region of Azerbaijan to Armenian SSR. Shortly thereafter, the conflict reached the village of Garadaghli. Since the beginning of 1988, calls from Armenian residents of Khojavend (Martuni) district to “cleanse the district and whole Karabakh from Azerbaijanis” increased substantially. Armenian armed units made up from local Armenian residents and Armenians from abroad arriving to engage in warfare began arming themselves. The main purpose was to terrorize the local Azerbaijani population of the district and eventually force them out.
As a result of armed attacks on the village, the Azerbaijani residents of Garadaghli started organizing self-defense units and setting up positions around the village due to the fact that Garadaghli was surrounded by Armenian-populated villages which had a significant number of Armenian armed units. Since November 1991, the village was in complete blockade and sieged from all sides. The self-defense unit defended the village up until February 1992. In the months leading to the tragedy, the village was regularly attacked resulting in civilian deaths. On November 24, 1990, for instance, 3 residents of Garadaghli were shot dead near the highway Khojavend (Martuni) – Khankendi (Stepanakert). On January 9, 1991 “UAZ” automobile was fired on by Armenian bands resulting in one death and four wounded, all being civilian. Two of the injured eventually died from gunshot wounds in the hospital.
On March 8, 1991 two more residents of Garadaghli were shot dead by Armenian armed units. On June 28, 1991 Armenians burned six Azerbaijani residents (both men and women) at a farm 3 km away from Garadaghli. On September 8, 1991 Armenian armed units ambushed a bus with civilian passengers travelling from Agdam to Garadaghli. The bus which had 40 passengers on board was fired upon from both sides, killing 6 women and 2 teenagers on the spot. Five passengers died from gun shot wounds in the hospital.
On January 8, 1992, two more residents of Garadaghli, the veteran of World War II Gasym Aliyev and a 23-year old Mazahir Gulverdiyev, became victims of Armenian terrorist activities.
It should be noted that all villages in Nagorno-Karabakh with predominant Azerbaijani population were systematically attacked and sieged by Armenian armed units. Self-defense units of Garadaghli village tried to save lives of women, children and elderly by taking them out of the village through woods.
Starting from November 1991, Garadaghli was now under complete siege. Its capture bore a strategic purpose for Armenians since Garadaghli is located on the road connecting Khankendi and town of Khojavend.
The residents were left in despair having been fully cut off from the rest of the world. In January of 1992, the siege was intensified. On January 12, in order to divert the attention of Armenian units, a part of the Azerbaijani self-defense unit counterattacked the Armenian units of “Aramo” and “Arabo” deployed in Khojavend town.
On January 16, the self-defense unit counterattacked again but was pushed back into the village. On February 14, 1992 Armenian fighters from “Aramo”, “Arao” as well as servicemen of the 366th regiment of the Russian army remaining in Khankendi (Stepanakert) after dissolution of USSR, started an offensive on the village but were repelled by the self-defense forces.
Armenians were eventually able to enter the village on February 17 when the Azerbaijani self-defense unit ran out of ammunition.
The Armenians captured 118 residents of Garadaghli. Upon entering the village, Armenians immediately shot 33 residents dead (Markar Melkonian, the brother of infamous Armenian terrorist Monte Melkonian who took part in the offensive puts the number at 38).
Markar Melkonian writes in his book “My Brother’s Road”:
“Soldiers of Arabo and Aramo took 38 prisoners, including women and other civilians, to a ditch by the village. One of the captured took out a hidden grenade and threw it to the feet of the guard which exploded and tore a part of his leg off. Arabo and Aramo fighters wanted to avenge their comrade’s death and started stabbing and executing all of the captives. Shram Edo, one of the five fighters from the “Patriotic detachment” from Ashdarak joined them pouring fuel on the wounded soldiers and lighting them up with matches. By the time Monte approached the ditch by the village, there were only piles of remains.”
The rest of the captives were loaded onto trucks and transported to Khankendi (Stepanakert). On their way to Khankendi, Armenians residents of villages along the road went out to look at the captive Azerbaijani residents of Garadaghli.
From time to time, the trucks with captives would stop, Armenians would bring down a few of them and executed before the gathered residents of Armenian villages. When the trucks reached Khankendi (Stepanakert), there were only 52 prisoners out of 118 taken in Garadaghli. In Khankendi dungeons 7 more died from beating and tortures. The rest of the captives were freed with mediation of the Red Cross. Only 45 out of 118 captured were able to leave the Armenian captivity. Ten of the killed were women, eight were children. Two families lost 4 people each, 42 families lost heads of families, about 140 children became orphans.
After the occupation, the village was looted and razed to the ground.
Massacres of Azerbaijani civilians by Armenian armed detachments perpetrated on residents of Garadaghli are an acts of war crimes. The residents who were able to leave are now internally displaced persons (IDPs) living in different parts of Azerbaijan.
The Garadaghli massacre is one of the most tragic events of the Nagorno-Karabakh War. Eight days after the Garadaghli Massacre, the same Armenian detachments perpetrated the worst massacre of the war, the Khojaly Massacre where 613 Azerbaijani civilians were brutally executed.
Web-source: GARADAGHLI.ORG
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