Residents of Alkhanly Demand Punishment of Zakhra Guliyeva�s Killers

Baku / 07.07.17 / Turan: Residents of the village of Alkhanly of Fizuli region of Azerbaijan and neighboring settlements are agitated by the death of Sahiba Guliyeva, 50, and her two-year-old granddaughter Zakhra Guliyeva and the wounding of their relative Sarvinaz Guliyeva.

The village of Alkhanly in a short time from August 1993 to January 1994 was under Armenian occupation. The Azerbaijani army liberated it during the winter campaign of 1993-1994. However, after the liberation, the returning population lives under fire.

The village is on a hill. However, the Armenian side shells it from more advantageous mountain positions from the occupied Fizuli district center.

The village is located 2.5-3 km from the contact line of Azerbaijani and Armenian troops.

As local residents told Turan, there are no positions, facilities or equipment of the Azerbaijani army in the village and on July 4, the Armenian side deliberately bombarded the village.

On July 2, too, shelling took place, but by a lucky chance no one suffered. On July 4, a shell hit the Guliyevs' yard, where the grandmother and granddaughter were killed.

"Our military did not even respond to the shooting of Armenians, so that there would be no new attacks.

The guilty must be punished. The death of a child must be avenged. We are afraid for children who are afraid to go out to play on the street," a local resident Ruhiya Feiziyeva said.

On July 6, military attachés of a number of foreign states were informed of the incident at the scene with details. Military representatives of 10 embassies and diplomats took part in the trip to Alkhanly.

Local residents expressed dissatisfaction with the inactivity of international mediators for the settlement of the conflict.

"How much can we live under fire? There must be an end to this. There is no longer any faith in international organizations or in negotiations. How many representatives of the OSCE Minsk Group or employees of other international organizations can come? If they are not able to resolve the conflict, then let them go away and do not interfere, as we will re-conquer our own lands," a local resident Elshad Guluzadeh said.

In addition to shelling, the Armenian side creates obstacles for economic activities in the village. So, they block water from a source that is under their control and this creates obstacles for irrigation.

In addition, because of the increased bombardment, people cannot harvest, and Armenians deliberately set fire to crops.

Military representatives of foreign countries refrained from commenting on the events for the media, but some still spoke briefly.

"All America shares the grief of the relatives of the victims," James Thomson, the military attaché of the US Embassy, ​​told reporters.

The US, according to him, believes that a peaceful settlement of the Karabakh conflict is an ideal way to ensure peace, security for the civilian population and stability.

The head of the press service of the Defense Ministry, Vagif Dargahli, told reporters that there is no military equipment, personnel, positions or the staff of the Azerbaijani army in this settlement. "Military attachés and journalists, foreign media outlets who visited the village personally verified this," Dargahli said.

The village of Alkhanly is 320 km south-west of Baku in the Fizuli region of Azerbaijan, 18 km east of the regional center of Fuzuli, which since 1993 is under Armenian occupation.

In Alkhanly about 2 thousand people live. They are engaged in agriculture and livestock farming. -06C03--