Azerbaijani first family reviews reconstruction in Khojavand, meets residents PHOTO / UPDATED

On February 25, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, accompanied by First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and their daughter Arzu Aliyeva, inspected reconstruction and resettlement progress in both Khojavand village and Khojavand town in the Khojavand district.

Emin Huseynov, Special Representative of the President for the Aghdam, Fuzuli, and Khojavand districts, briefed the President and the First Lady on social infrastructure projects carried out in the village, Caliber.Az reports via state media.

Khojavand village, liberated from occupation in September 2023 during anti-terror operations by the Azerbaijan Armed Forces, comprises 278 private houses, of which 128 were previously uninhabitable and 150 partially habitable.

“Twenty of the partially habitable houses have already been renovated, with an additional 130 scheduled for repair this year,” the officials reported. In February, 20 families, totaling 94 individuals, returned to the village, while 130 more families (533 people) are planned to be resettled between March and December.

Extensive infrastructure work has already been completed, including the installation of a 5-kilometer gas supply line, restoration of 1,500 meters of the existing network, rehabilitation of 2,100 meters of 0.4 kV power lines, and two transformer stations. Internal roads have been paved, pedestrian paths constructed, and additional works are ongoing. Following the inspection, the presidential family visited the home of Rizvan Ibrahimov, one of the residents who relocated to the village, and held a conversation to learn about living conditions.

Later in the day, President Aliyev and the First Lady reviewed reconstruction progress in Khojavand town. Occupied by Armenian forces in 1992, the town was liberated during Azerbaijan’s anti-terror operation in September 2023. On October 15, 2023, President Aliyev raised the national flag in Khojavand town, symbolizing its return under Azerbaijani control.

The Khojavand district spans 1,510 square kilometers and has a population of approximately 12,500 across one town, two settlements, and 80 villages. Of the town’s 980 individual houses, 133 remain unfit for use, while 847 are partially usable. Currently, 55 of these houses are ready for occupancy, with repairs scheduled for 792 additional homes this year.

In recent days, 50 families (194 people) have returned to Khojavand town. Since September 2025, a total of 1,485 residents (355 families) have resettled in five residential areas of the district: 50 families (194 people) to Khojavand town, 142 families (604 people) to Girmizi Bazar settlement, 85 families (360 people) to Sos village, 58 families (233 people) to Hadrut settlement, and 20 families (94 people) to Khojavand village.

President Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and Arzu Aliyeva also visited the home of Ilgar Hasanov, a recently relocated resident of Khojavand town, to engage with him and learn about the living conditions provided.

The president, the First Lady, and their daughter then met with residents of Khojavand town and Khojavand village and held a conversation with them.

President Ilham Aliyev: Welcome. Congratulations. You arrived a few days earlier than me. I sincerely congratulate you on your return to our native Garabagh land. I am confident that you will live here comfortably, happily, in peace and security. You deserve this.

You endured long years of suffering and hardship. Life as an internally displaced person is difficult — both morally and physically. Leaving your native land and going elsewhere, even within Azerbaijan, and living in hardship is a great trial. You emerged from this trial with honor. I am sure that the entire Azerbaijani people, including you, always believed that this day would come — that we would liberate these lands, restore justice, and drive the enemy out of our territories.

As you know, although a large part of the formerly occupied lands was liberated five years ago during the Patriotic War, Khojavand remained under occupation, and the people of Khojavand believed that the situation would change someday. I am confident there was faith in society that not even one inch of our land would remain under the enemy’s heel — and we achieved that as well. For more than two years now, we have exercised full control over the entire sovereign territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan. We destroyed the enemy’s last stronghold, expelled the separatists, brought them before the court, and fully restored justice.

Therefore, that difficult period is now behind us — it is in the past and will never return. Today, our state is strong, our army is strong, and our people have shown the whole world their greatness over these years. In the last 80 years, no other country has achieved such a complete and absolute victory as Azerbaijan.

Now is the time for construction. The state has already created conditions for you here. Some houses have been restored and rebuilt, and this process will continue. Tens of thousands of Azerbaijani citizens are already living in the liberated territories, and approximately 30,000 of them are former internally displaced persons. As you know, over the last four to five years, we have primarily allocated funds to infrastructure projects because the essential conditions for living must first be ensured — electricity, gas, water, roads, bridges, and tunnels. Now, more funds will be directed toward the construction and restoration of residential houses. Therefore, the “Great Return” process will accelerate even further.

Jobs are also being created here — through the state, public institutions, and, of course, the private sector. The majority of people living here were previously engaged in agriculture. You know well that this region has beautiful nature, fertile land, water, and springs — everything necessary is here. The main thing is that people now live here comfortably and remain fully confident that such tragedies will never again befall our people.

To ensure this, we must always remain strong and vigilant, never forget the past, and look to the future with confidence — just as we look with confidence and live today. I sincerely congratulate you once again and wish you good health.

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Commemorative photos were taken.

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The residents expressed their gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev for the conditions created for them.

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On February 25, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and their daughter Arzu Aliyeva reviewed the developments in the village of Khojavand in the Khojavand district.

In addition, during their visit to the town of Khojavand, President Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their daughter Arzu Aliyeva reviewed the reconstruction progress in the town, Caliber.Az reports, citing state media.

Later, they met with residents of Khojavand town and Khojavand village.