Jordan Daily - Azerbaijan on Tuesday commemorated the 108th anniversary of the March 1918 massacres, honoring innocent civilians killed in acts of genocide, ethnic cleansing and racial discrimination.
In a statement relaesed by the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Amman, Azerbaijani authorities called for accountability for perpetrators of international crimes, warning that impunity undermines international law and raises the risk of future atrocities.
According to the statement, the violence in March 1918 was carried out by armed groups linked to the Baku Soviet and the Dashnaktsutyun party. Azerbaijani officials say tens of thousands of Azerbaijanis were killed in coordinated attacks across several regions, including Baku, Shamakhi, Guba, Karabakh, Zangezur, Nakhchivan, Shirvan and Iravan.
In Guba alone, more than 16,000 people were killed and 167 villages were destroyed, the statement said. It added that not only civilians but also cultural and religious sites, including mosques and historical monuments, were targeted.
Azerbaijan also cited remarks attributed to Stepan Shaumian, then an extraordinary commissioner for the Caucasus, as evidence that the violence was driven by ethnic motives under the pretext of combating counter-revolutionary forces.
Following the establishment of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic in 1918, institutions were set up to investigate the events and present findings to the international community. March 31 was declared a national day of mourning, though subsequent political developments prevented what officials describe as a full legal and political assessment.
After regaining independence, Azerbaijan formally recognized the events through a 1998 decree titled “On the Genocide of Azerbaijanis,” issued by former President Heydar Aliyev.
Similar patterns of violence persisted into the 20th century, including mass deportations of Azerbaijanis from present-day Armenia and killings during conflicts over Azerbaijani territories, including the 1992 Khojaly massacre.
“Azerbaijani people will never forget these tragic pages of their history,” the statement noted.
