Azerbaijan is Creating a New Level of Fabrications: False Examples of Specific Armenian Villages and Cities Have Emerged, Says Tatoyan

Former Human Rights Defender of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan, raises alarm, stating: "The Azerbaijani authorities are creating a new level of fabrications to establish artificial grounds for new demands and acts of military aggression against Armenia. They have started to bring in false examples of specific Armenian villages and cities.

Our studies of Azerbaijani state policy have uncovered new facts. In particular, they have moved on to detailed fabrications. Through examples like specific villages or cities in Armenia (for instance, in Syunik or Gegharkunik), they are justifying claims that these have been 'emptied and displaced' due to alleged massacres committed by Armenians against Azerbaijanis. The timeframe they refer to generally spans from the early 20th century to the 1920s, and they also falsify facts from the 1980s.

This is a systematic policy being widely implemented throughout Azerbaijan and abroad, through state and governmental media outlets, ensuring extensive propaganda. By doing this, they not only prevent the diminishing of hatred and enmity towards Armenians in society but also deepen it.

In other words, they present what appear to be humanitarian issues, but underneath this 'humanitarian' guise, they are preparing political agendas and justifications for military aggression, presenting new territorial demands against Armenia. This policy underlies the atrocities committed by Azerbaijani armed forces against Armenian servicemen and the civilian population.

Thus, false grounds for so-called 'reparations and territorial claims' against Armenia, termed the purported return to 'Western Azerbaijan,' are being created, mirroring the ethnic cleansing and mass forced displacements in Artsakh.