YEREVAN (Noyan Tapan)–Nine years ago–on April 10–1992–a tragedy occurred in the village of Maragha Karabakh’s Mardakert region. An estimated 49-53 victims were killed by Azerbaijani forces. Another 50 people–including 9 children–were taken hostage. The fate of many of them still remains unknown.
Azerbaijani armed units supported by twenty tanks attacked Maragha and committed unprecedented brutalities against local civilians. The massacre was resumed on April 22-23–when the surviving population of Maragha returned to bury their deceased fellow villagers.
The Maragha bloodbath was confirmed by different international human rights organizations–in particular–the organization Helsinki Watch.
Baroness Caroline Cox–the Vice-Speaker of the British Parliament’s House of Lords–visited Maragha and witnessed the complete destruction of the village with survivors burying the disfigured and dismembered bodies of adults and children. Baroness Cox described the atrocities of the Azeris in the village of Maragha in her book "Ethnic Cleansing Is Going On." The fact that the Azeris continue making allegations over the Khojalu events and keep appealing to various international organizations in that connection exasperates Caroline Cox–since the Armenia’s who have indisputable proof on Maragha do not take similar action against the Azeris.