One of the initiators of Khojaly Genocide, Zori Balayan, dies

Zori Balayan, known as a key ideologue behind Armenian separatist movements and one of the initiators of the Khojaly genocide, has died, his son Aik Balayan said, according to Report.

Balayan gained prominence among Armenians in the early 1980s with his book Ochag, in which he distorted historical facts to claim that Karabakh belonged to Armenians and portrayed Turks and Azerbaijanis as enemies of both Russia and Armenia.

He was also involved in organizing violent acts, including ordering the deadly 1994 bombing in the Baku metro. Balayan was considered one of the key figures promoting the slogan "Miatsum" ("Reunification") during the First Nagorno-Karabakh War.