A commemorative event dedicated to the memory of the victims of the Khojaly genocide was held at the Azerbaijani Embassy in Kazakhstan.
The documentary "Justice for Khojaly" prepared by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation was shown at the event. The event also featured a presentation of a video clip entitled "February Lightning" dedicated to Khojaly.
Azerbaijani Ambassador to Kazakhstan Rashad Mammadov said that European countries celebrate February 22 as the Day of Victims of Crime. Genocide is the most serious crime against humanity and requires special attention from the world community.
Armenian armed forces killed 613 people in Khojaly, including children, women, and the elderly. These and previous genocides committed in different countries of the world are crimes against humanity and must be recognized by the world community.
The ambassador said that the release date of the music video for the song dedicated to the Khojaly genocide was not chosen by chance. We appreciate the fact that the brotherly Kazakh public is not indifferent to the tragic pages of Azerbaijan's history. As an example, the song "February Lightning" was written in Kazakhstan based on a folk project. The purpose of this project is to call the world community to justice for Khojaly.
Poet-writer Dina Oraz noted that the song "February Lightning" is the result of two years of work and is a call to warn people against terrorism, extremism, and genocide. The main purpose of writing the song is to attract the attention of the people, to promote tolerance in the younger generation, the harmony of interethnic relations, and to engrave in the memory. "Justice for Khojaly!" campaign calls on the whole world to give a fair legal assessment of the Khojaly events.
Singer of the song, Kazakh singer of Azerbaijani origin Neyla Guliyeva said, "Justice for Khojaly!" various events are being held around the world as part of the international campaign. In this way, the world community is informed about what happened in Khojaly. He said that representatives of the Kazakh public and various nationalities in the country took part in the project.
Composer of the song Azat Ospanov said that he decided to make a music video after watching documentaries about the Khojaly genocide, a terrible crime against humanity. He said that there is nothing worse in the world than the death of innocent children. Each of us must contribute to the strengthening of peace and harmony.
The producer of the clip, Dana Ryskeldinova, also shared her impressions of the project. He said: “We wanted to express our feelings in this clip. As a mother, I owe it to myself to make this video. We wanted to call society to justice, peace, and tranquility so that such crimes do not happen again. "
A photo exhibition reflecting the Khojaly genocide was demonstrated at the event.