Great Return: Keys to flats handed over to residents in Azerbaijan’s Sugovushan UPDATED

Another group of former internally displaced persons (IDPs) has returned to Sugovushan village in Aghdara district, with keys to their new flats being handed over to them.

Representatives from Service of Restoration, Construction, and Management in Khankandi City, Aghdara and Khojali districts and the State Committee for Refugees and IDPs, attended the ceremony, Caliber.Az reports citing local media.

This first stage of resettlement saw 20 families, comprising 73 individuals, move back to their ancestral homes in Sugovushan, marking a key milestone in the broader national strategy to restore life in these recently liberated regions. In total, 180 families, or 591 individuals, are expected to resettle in the village, with the ongoing process gradually bringing more displaced families back to their lands.

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The Great Return initiative to repopulate the territories liberated from occupation continues under the order of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev. As part of this process, another group of internally displaced persons (IDPs), who had been temporarily settled across various regions of the republic, has arrived in Sugovushan village of Aghdara district.

This new group of former IDPs, who had previously been housed in dormitories, sanatoriums, and administrative buildings throughout Azerbaijan, is now returning to their ancestral lands, marking another significant step in the repopulation efforts, Caliber.Az reports via local media.

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A new group of displaced persons has been resettled in the restored Sugovushan village, Aghdara district, marking another positive step in the ongoing efforts to repopulate the region.

The families resettled in Sugovushan are primarily those who had been temporarily living in various parts of the republic, including hostels, sanatoriums, and administrative buildings, Caliber.Az reports citing local media.

The latest relocation involves 53 families, comprising 174 individuals, who have now returned to their home village.

Currently, Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur host not only the resettled former internally displaced persons (IDPs), but also approximately 40,000 individuals who have been engaged in implementing projects in the region. These people are working in various sectors, including local government institutions, healthcare, education, culture, tourism, industry, and energy, all of which have resumed their activities as part of the reconstruction process.

This resettlement initiative is part of a broader effort to rebuild the affected areas and provide long-term stability and opportunities for those who had been displaced. The ongoing resettlement process is viewed as a key part of the overall recovery and development strategy for the region, aimed at both restoring infrastructure and ensuring sustainable livelihoods for the returning populations.

Sugovushan village in Azerbaijan's Aghdara district was liberated from Armenian occupation on October 3, 2020.

On that day, the tricolour State Flag of Azerbaijan was raised in Sugovushan.

The village, historically known as Sugovushan, was renamed Madagiz during the Soviet era. It was first liberated by the Azerbaijani army from occupation in 1991-1992, but in April 1994, Armenia once again occupied the village.

Following the occupation of Sugovushan, the Armenians established military units in the area. Military Unit No. 49971 was considered one of the best in the Armenian army in Karabakh, and Military Unit No. 33651, designated as the "6th Defensive Region" by the Armenian army, also held positions in Sugovushan.

The battle for the liberation of Sugovushan is regarded as one of the most significant engagements by the Azerbaijani Army on the northeastern front during the Second Karabakh War. In the battles along the Sugovushan-Aghdara axis, Azerbaijani forces destroyed four tanks of the Armenian armed forces' 77th tank battalion, while three more tanks were captured as trophies.

Artillery strikes by Azerbaijani troops on the defensive positions of Armenia's 5th Mountain Rifle Regiment in the Aghdara sector resulted in the destruction of four combat vehicles. The regiment suffered heavy losses in personnel, with several units abandoning their positions and fleeing the battlefield.

By Vafa Gulyeva