A memorial event dedicated to the victims of the Khojaly genocide was held in The Hague, the Netherlands. The event was organized by the Netherlands-Azerbaijan Turkish Cultural Association with the support of the Azerbaijan Diaspora Support Fund under the State Committee for Work with Diaspora of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Representatives of Dutch society, members of the Azerbaijani and Turkish communities in the Netherlands, and members of the Netherlands coordination of the Coordination Council of Azerbaijanis in the Benelux countries attended the event.
Participants first visited the monument dedicated to the Khojaly genocide victims at the “Nieuw Eykenduynen” cemetery and observed a one-minute silence in memory of the victims.
Speakers at the event included Mammad Ahmadzade, Ambassador of Azerbaijan to the Netherlands; Fatma Ceren Yazğan, Ambassador of Turkey to the Netherlands; Şamil Ayrım, member of the Turkish Grand National Assembly; Ekrem Abdullayev, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Diaspora Support Fund; Pərviz Məmmədzadə, Deputy Chairman of the Board of TADEF; Saskia Bruines, Deputy Mayor of The Hague; Bart ten Broek, Chairman of the Benelux Azerbaijan Congress; Elsevər Məmmədov, Netherlands coordinator of the Coordination Council of Azerbaijanis in Benelux; and İlhan Aşkın, Chairman of the Netherlands-Azerbaijan Turkish Cultural Association.
In their speeches, they emphasized that although 34 years have passed since the night of February 25–26, 1992, when the Khojaly genocide was committed against the Azerbaijani people and humanity as a whole, this tragedy has not been forgotten. The massacre of civilians and its horrific consequences were discussed, and it was highlighted that February 26 is marked in Azerbaijani memory with blood. The necessity of giving legal and political recognition to the Khojaly genocide was stressed.
Later, a message from researcher and author Henri van Rensin, author of the book “Black Clouds over Karabakh”, was read to the participants.
Within the framework of the event, the short documentary film “Khojaly Medal” was screened. A photo exhibition dedicated to the victims of the Khojaly genocide by students of the “Xarıbülbül” school, operating under the Netherlands-Azerbaijan Turkish Cultural Association, was presented, and melancholic music was performed by kamancha player Emin Sadiqlu.