69,047 views
29 years have passed since the Bashlibel massacre. One of the cruelest war crimes committed by Armenians against our people took place in April 1993 in the village of Bashlibel in Kalbajar. During the occupation, the closure of all road crossings and trails by the Armenians forced 62 residents to hide in the mountains. However, these people were able to hide for only 17 days. During those days, they were forced to feed only on river water and natural plants. On April 18, 1993, Armenian bandits discovered a cave where women, children and the elderly were hiding. They carried out the next part of the terrorist act. During the occupation of Bashlibel, 27 peaceful and unarmed residents were shot and killed by Armenian bandits. The film crew of Trend's Karabakh bureau visited the village of Bashlibel in the liberated Kalbajar region, visited the area where the tragedy occurred, and filmed the terrible memories of witnesses who survived the genocide by chance. Mahir Jafarov, a witness to the Bashlibel genocide, told Trend TV that when the Armenians occupied the village, they burned the villager Huseyn Huseynov alive and tortured and killed Ganaet Agayev. In total, 19 villagers were taken hostage by the Armenian military. 30 people who managed to escape enemy bullets retreated to the mountains and lived under siege for another 113 days. Those who survived faced death many times and went without food for days. 29 people, who escaped the siege and walked for four days, were able to cross to the Dashkesan area on July 22, 1993. During the occupation, the population of the Bashlibel village was 1,790 people. The village had 323 private houses, a secondary school with 380 students, a kindergarten with 45 places, and a hospital with 45 beds. During the occupation, 6 shops, 1 bathhouse, 1 bakery, 1 club, 1 culture house, and 2 libraries operated in the village. During the occupation, 25 trucks, 2 UAZs, 2 passenger buses, 5 tractors, and dozens of other agricultural equipment that were in the village remained in the village. None of the villagers were able to take any property out of their homes. The residents, who were completely surrounded, tried to save their lives in the market of life, as they say. The last refuge of the people of Bashlibel, who live in the mountains, is also the mountains. It should be noted that Bashlibel is one of the oldest and largest villages in the Kalbajar region. The village, with an area of 7,659 hectares, was located at the confluence of two mountain rivers, at the foot of Dalidagh. The local residents who lived in the village until 1993 were Azerbaijani Turks. We present a video report prepared from Bashlibel.