Video: The National Assembly Honors the Victims of the Sumgait Pogroms with a Minute of Silence

The National Assembly of Armenia began today’s session with a minute of silence to honor the victims of the Sumgait pogroms that took place from February 27 to 29, 1988. The reminder of the massacres came just a few minutes after the session commenced, from Arthur Khachatryan, a member of the 'Hayastan' faction.

“On February 27, 35 years ago, began the latest genocide of Armenians in Sumgait by Azerbaijan, which continued on the 28th and 29th. I propose that before we start our work, we observe a minute of silence in memory of the victims,” said Khachatryan.

It should be noted that from February 26 to 29, 1988, in the city of Sumgait, located 20 kilometers from Baku, Azerbaijani authorities initiated the extermination of the local Armenian population, accompanied by massive looting and destruction of Armenian property. According to official data, 26 Armenians were killed, while unofficial figures suggest that the number of victims is in the hundreds.