Three years pass since Azerbaijan's liberation of Khudafarin bridge from Armenian occupation

The armed forces of Azerbaijan liberated three years ago the historic Khudafarin bridge complex from Armenia's occupation as part of the counter-offensive campaign to suppress Armenia’s armed attacks.

President Ilham Aliyev announced on October 18, 2020 about the liberation of 13 more villages in the district of Jabrayil, after 27 years of Armenia’s occupation in 1993.

“The Soltanli, Emirvarli, Mashanli, Hasanli, Alikeykhanli, Gumlag, Hajili, Goyerchinveysalli, Niyazguzlar, Kechel Memmedli, Shahvelli, Haji Ismayilli and Isagli villages of Jabrayil district have been liberated. Karabakh is Azerbaijan!” President Aliyev wrote on Twitter.

President Aliyev has made public the raising of Azerbaijani flag on the ancient Khudafarin arch bridge that spans over the Araz river in Jabrayil to connect Azerbaijan with Iran.

The Khudafarin bridges span the northern and southern shores of the Araz River on the Azerbaijan-Iran state border. Two separate Khudafarin bridges with 11 and 15 arches were built in Jabrayil in the 11th and 13th centuries. The shorter overpass measured about 130 meters in length, 6 meters in width and 12 meters in height above the river level. 

The Khudafarin bridges are among Azerbaijan's ancient monuments. The bridge was built on the caravan road connecting the medieval cities of South Azerbaijan (the northwestern part of modern-day Iran) and North Azerbaijan (modern-day the Republic of Azerbaijan). The first bridge built in the narrowest part of the Araz River, surrounded by rocks, was operational between the 11th and 19th centuries. The brick bridge was built in the 12th century.

There is no information documented about the name of the person who built the bridge in historical sources. According to many researchers, both bridges were named "Khudafarin" because their foundations were laid on natural raft stones in the middle of the river. However, their secrets have not been fully disclosed yet. Some historians say they were built in 1027 by Fazl I, the Shaddadis, a medieval state established in the territory of Azerbaijan with its capital located in the Gandja city. This bridge was of great importance in the development of Azerbaijan's economic and cultural relations with India, Middle Eastern countries, Russia and Western European countries.

According to the historical facts, the bridge remained relatively intact and useful until the 1930s. At that time, the coastal arches of the bridge were destroyed. Since then, the local population refers to the structure as the "broken bridge". Currently, only three arches of the 11-arch bridge remain.

The historical buildings and monuments in Azerbaijan suffered serious damage from Armenia's cultural vandalism after the occupation of Jabrayil in 1993. The bridge was damaged due to neglect for nearly 30 years.

The fighting between Armenia and Azerbaijan sparked after Armenia targeted Azerbaijani positions and civilian settlements on September 27. The uninterrupted bombardment triggered immediate counter-attack measures from the Azerbaijani military to push the Armenian offensive back.

Currently, military operations are being conducted in the territory of Azerbaijan, marking the fighting most intense between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces since a ceasefire that was reached in 1994.

Armenia and Azerbaijan have been locked in a decades-old conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which is the internationally recognized territory of Azerbaijan but occupied by Armenia. Following the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1991, Armenia launched a military campaign against Azerbaijan that lasted until a ceasefire deal was reached in 1994. Armenia occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized territories including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. One million ethnic Azerbaijanis were forcibly displaced from these areas and 30,000 were killed.