YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 28, ARMENPRESS. The Armenian Parliament paid a tribute to the memory of Armenians who were killed during the massacres organized at the state level in the Azerbaijani city of Sumgait 30 years ago with a moment of silence, Armenpress reports.

At the beginning of the Parliament session Speaker Ara Babloyan made this proposal.

“30 years ago on these days hundreds of Armenians were brutally killed as a result of the crime organized at the state level in the Armenian-populated Sumgait city of Azerbaijan. The mass massacres conducted by the Azerbaijani authorities aimed at intimidating Armenians with a new genocide and forcing them to refuse from the national liberation movement. 30 years ago the crime committed by the Azerbaijani leadership against the Armenian people, unfortunately, hasn’t yet received an adequate political and legal assessment at the international platforms”, Speaker Babloyan said.

He added that the absence of condemnation further encouraged Azerbaijan to carry out ethnic cleansings and massacres in Kirovabad, Baku, Maragha and other Armenian-populated settlements of Azerbaijan.

“Dear colleagues, I suggest to pay a tribute to the memory of our compatriots who became the victims of that crime with a moment of silence”, he said.

English – translator/editor: Aneta Harutyunyan