Arizona state representative sends letter to Sargsyan amid murder of little Zahra by Armenians

Baku. 6 July. REPORT.AZ/ Donald Shooter, Arizona State Representative has sent an open letter to Armenian president Serzh Sargsyan in regard with another large-scale provocation in the frontline as Armenian armed forces subjected to fire the Alkhanli village of Fuzuli region, using 82 and 120 millimeter mortars and heavy grenade launchers on July 4, at 20:40. As a result of this provocation of Armenia, the residents of the village Allahverdiyeva Sahiba Idris (born in 1966), and Guliyeva Zahra Elnur (born in 2016) were killed. Guliyeva Salminaz Iltifat (born in 1965), who has got fragment wounds as a result of the shelling, has been taken to the military hospital and was operated on.

Report informs referring to the press service of Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs, text of the letter says:

"I am shocked and appalled by the news of killing of a 2-year-old Azerbaijani girl Zahra Guliyeva and her grandmother Sahiba Guliyeva by the armed forces of the Republic of Armenia on July 4, 2017. Murdering innocent civilians, let alone children, is absolutely unacceptable in any circumstance, constituting a serious violation of international humanitarian and human rights law. 

Here at the Arizona State Legislature, we are strongly committed to the principles of justice, and try to make sure that these principles prevail not only in Arizona, but also in our nation and in our world. Those principles have been seriously violated when it comes to the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. A fair and just person cannot idly sit by and use vague formulations, when it is crystal clear what is right and what is wrong. The ongoing military occupation of around 20% of Azerbaijan’s sovereign territory by Armenia, which has led to the total ethnic cleansing of all the occupied areas of around 800,000 Azerbaijani civilians, is one of the darkest pages in the modern European history". 

"This injustice continues to cause much suffering to hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijani refugees, who have been deprived of their basic rights as a result of this illegal military occupation of their homes and lands. It is quite regrettable that the legally binding resolutions passed by the UN Security Council in 1993 demanding the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all Armenian troops from Azerbaijan’s occupied regions have not been fulfilled. As a result, the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict remains the largest threat to stability in the South Caucasus region. 

The atrocities that were committed against the civilian population during the Armenia-Azerbaijan conflict, such as the brutal massacre of over 600 Azerbaijani civilians, including hundreds of children, women and elderly, by Armenia’s armed forces in the town of Khojaly in February 1992, which the Human Rights Watch called “the largest massacre in the conflict,” are a sobering reminder of horrible damages wars and conflicts can inflict upon innocent civilians. It is unfortunate to see that after such atrocities civilians continue to be helpless victims of this tragic conflict. Targeting civilians is wrong and should be vehemently condemned. Therefore, I harshly condemn the killing of little Zahra and her grandmother Sahiba, in the strongest possible terms, and call on you and your Government to do the same and launch a serious investigation in order to find and bring to justice the culprits behind this horrific act and heinous crime". 

"I also urge you,  to take all necessary measures to make sure that such tragic incidents are never repeated again", an appeal says.