Newspaper: Up to 50,000 civilians killed in 1918 Azerbaijani genocide in just days

Turkish newspaper Türkiye has published an article marking March 31 as the Day of Genocide of Azerbaijanis, shedding light on the tragic events of 1918 when tens of thousands of Azerbaijanis were killed by Armenian and Bolshevik groups.

The newspaper highlighted that, "Between March 30 and April 3, 1918, Armenian and Bolshevik groups killed 50,000 Azerbaijanis in Baku, Shamakhi, Guba, Khachmaz, Lankaran, Hajigabul, Salyan, Zangezur, Karabakh, Nakhchivan, and other regions," Caliber.Az reports.

It was noted that, the violence was only halted after the intervention of the Caucasus Islamic Army, an Ottoman force that expelled the perpetrators. "The massacre came to an end when the Caucasus Islamic Army, an Ottoman force, intervened and expelled the perpetrators," the article stated.

Azerbaijan formally recognises the events of 1918 as genocide. "Azerbaijan officially recognises the 1918 massacres as genocide, a designation formalised by late President Heydar Aliyev in 1998, when he declared March 31 as Azerbaijani Genocide Remembrance Day," the article noted.

Note that, the historical conflict between Azerbaijanis and Armenians, particularly during the Tsarist and Soviet periods, led to significant bloodshed and territorial disputes. Beginning in 1905, Armenian armed groups actively destabilised various Azerbaijani districts, including Baku, targeting the indigenous population.

Following the October Revolution in Russia, Bolshevik and Armenian Dashnak forces, under the leadership of Stepan Shahumyan, intensified attacks on Azerbaijanis. 

At the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, Azerbaijani delegates, led by A. Topchubashev, presented evidence of these atrocities to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, classifying them as genocide. The pattern of violence persisted, culminating in the Khojaly massacre on February 26, 1992, where Armenian forces killed 613 civilians, including women and children.

By Aghakazim Guliyev