From the appeal of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev to the Azerbaijani people on the occasion of the anniversary of the genocide in Khojaly – Baku,February 24, 2004
…Our people faced one of the most horrible days in its history on February 26, 1992. That day the ancient Azerbaijani town of Khojaly was razed to the ground. Hundreds of peaceful residents were killed without any military necessity, their corpses were disfigured with unprecedented tortures. Children, women, the elderly, entire families were annihilated. Such a massacre witnessed by the world community at the end of the 20th century, for its cruelty and brutality was committed not only against the Azerbaijani people, but also against the humanity…