Azerbaijani president: Aghdam subjected to urbicide during years of occupation UPDATED

President Ilham Aliyev has described the destruction of Aghdam during the years of occupation as an act of urbicide, highlighting the deliberate nature of the devastation by Armenian forces.

“It can be said that Aghdam was subjected to urbicide during the years of occupation. In other words, the city was razed to the ground by the Armenian state,” President Aliyev said during a meeting with residents relocating to Aghdam, Caliber.Az reports via local media.

“This was a clear example of a deliberate policy by the Armenian state and an expression of its hostility towards us. Their goal was also quite evident,” the head of state added.

Addressing the significance of the moment for the city, President Aliyev noted: “Today is a very significant day in the history of the city of Aghdam. It is a historic day. After a long absence, the natives of Aghdam are returning to their city.”

Congratulating the residents on their return, the President expressed optimism about their future in the city: “I am confident that you will live here comfortably, in a peaceful and secure environment.”

“Life is already being restored in Aghdam district today. People are living in three villages. I have participated in the ceremonies marking the re-commissioning of these villages – Kangarli, Sarijali, and Khidirli,” President Aliyev said during the meeting.

“Several thousand people are already living there, and this resettlement process continues. Today, people have also begun moving into the city of Aghdam, and 1,268 apartments in this new residential neighborhood will accommodate its residents,” the head of state added.

“It is true that there is a peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan now, and we were the ones who initiated it. Everyone knows and should know that. We were the first to propose it, we are the authors of the peace treaty, and we are the authors of all its articles,” President Aliyev said.

The head of state also emphasized the need to remember the past: “But how can we ever forget the occupation? How can we ever forget our martyrs? How can we ever forget the Khojaly victims and the deaths of other innocent people? We can never forget and should never forget that.”

President Aliyev further highlighted the role of the international community during the years of occupation: “Today, wars, clashes and conflicts are taking place in different places around the world. What do either international organizations or large influential countries do immediately? They impose sanctions. Sanctions also have a huge impact, of course.”

“In particular, if sanctions had been imposed on a small and almost poor country like Armenia, Armenia would have certainly ended the occupation. But not only were sanctions not imposed, on the contrary, some countries were giving Armenia free weapons – and not just a million dollars’ worth, but billions of dollars,” the Azerbaijani leader noted.

“We were the ones faced with the biggest injustices in the history of recent years. Because our lands were occupied… While all such situations exist, international organizations, major powers and political circles of various countries condemn the fact of occupation, use various methods to coerce the occupier or impose sanctions on it. We are seeing this. Recent history shows this,” President Aliyev said.

“Although international organizations made the right decisions during the Armenian-Azerbaijani war and during the ceasefire after the war, they did not take a single step to have these decisions implemented,” the head of state noted.