Azerbaijan Unearths 48 More Bodies in Newly Liberated Lands, Total Surpasses 600

As of April 27, additional 48 bodies were unearthed in the liberated lands of Azerbaijan, bringing the total count of discovered remains to over 600.

The announcement was made by Selcan Familzade, an official of Azerbaijan’s Prosecutor General’s Office Investigation Department, during a briefing held on April 30th. In total, the remains of 600 individuals were discovered. Among these, 124 were discovered in 2022 and 133 in 2023. 

Familzade detailed that genetic profiles have been generated and added to a database for matching with biological samples collected from the families of the missing persons. Further clarity is being sought through 362 forensic-medical and criminalistic examinations, as well as 318 court-appointed molecular-genetic examinations. To date, 252 forensic-medical and 23 molecular-genetic expert opinions have been compiled and submitted to the investigating authorities. 

Familzade highlighted the ongoing efforts to determine whether the bones are human, to whom they belong, the causes of death, and other related questions.

Additionally, Orkhan Rzayev, Head of the Forensics Department at the Prosecutor General’s Office of Azerbaijan, reported that 18 mass graves have been discovered in the liberated lands since the launch of search operations in 2020. From these sites, at least 172 bodies have been unearthed, with 55 individuals identified. 

The most recent discovery of human bodies occurred in the town of Khojaly in the Karabakh region on April 24th. Initial investigations revealed that during reconstruction and landscaping activities in the newly established area named “Məhəllə” (Neighborhood) in Khojaly’s Malibayli village, human remains were found on the surface. Excavations conducted during the investigation identified bone fragments believed to belong to at least six individuals.

The State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages, and Missing Persons of Azerbaijan compiled a list of 3,890 individuals missing in the First Karabakh War from 1991 to 1994, of which 3,171 are servicemen and 719 are civilians, including 71 children, 267 women, and 326 older adults. Moreover, according to the Commission, there are reports that during the First Karabakh War, 872 individuals survived, with 253 of them taken to Armenia. The Commission also listed six servicemen as missing following the 2020 Armenia-Azerbaijan war.

The Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict emerged in late 1980s with anti-Azerbaijan sentiments in Armenia and later escalated into armed intervention in Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized territories, including the Karabakh region. A bloody war between the two neighboring countries ended with a ceasefire in 1994 and saw Armenia occupying 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s sovereign territory. Over 30,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and one million were expelled from those lands in a brutal ethnic cleansing campaign conducted by Armenia.

Azerbaijan liberated the occupied territories as a result of a 44-day war with Armenia in 2020. On September 27, 2020, the longstanding conflict reignited when Armenia’s forces, stationed illegally in occupied Azerbaijani lands, attacked military positions and civilian settlements of Azerbaijan. In a 44-day counterattack, Azerbaijani forces liberated more than 300 settlements, including the cities of Jabrayil, Fuzuli, Zangilan, Gubadli, and Shusha, from Armenian occupation. The war concluded on November 10, 2020, with a tripartite statement signed by Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Russia. Under this agreement, Armenia returned the occupied Aghdam, Kalbajar, and Lachin districts to Azerbaijan.

However, certain parts of Khojaly and Khojavand districts, as well as the city of Khankendi, remained within the temporary monitoring zone of the Russian peacekeeping mission deployed in certain parts of the Karabakh region after the 2020 war.

Despite the legally binding demands for the withdrawal of Armenian forces from the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, the largest portion of the troops remained in Khankendi along with other settlements, including Khojaly, Aghdara, Khojavand, and Asgaran. Their presence in the area has led to dozens of provocations, resulting in loss of life on the Azerbaijani side.

On September 19, 2023, the Azerbaijan Armed Forces launched a one-day local anti-terrorist operation to neutralize illegal Armenian armed formations and their military infrastructure in the Karabakh region. On September 20, the illegal Armenian separatist regime requested through the Russian peacekeeping command to cease the local anti-terror activities by agreeing to withdraw and complete disarmament of the Armenian armed formations.