On April 10, 1992, Azerbaijani troops massacred Armenians in the Maraga village of the Martakert region of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

In an interview with Artsakhpress, commander of the self-defense detachment of Maraga village, head of the community Roma Karapetyan said the villagers realized that the Azerbaijanis were going to attack when they bombarded the village on 9 April.

“The next day, on 10 April, the Azerbaijani troops attacked Maraga. On that day, the self-defense detachments of the village led unmatched battles three times and repulsed the enemy. The attack left 173 homes burnt, 50 people dead, and 38 people were taken as hostages. Out of the 38, 24 were exchanged, and the destinies of 14 people remain unknown to this day. Through the efforts of Armenain troops, we managed to liberate Maraga at around 12 a.m. or 1 a.m. on the same day.

On the occasion of the 25^th anniversary of the Maraga massacre, the students of the Vagif Hambardzumyan Middle School of New Maraga organized a concert during which they performed in military uniforms, waving the Armenian tricolor flag and holding pictures of heroes who died for the village’s defense and signs condemning the vandalism of the Azerbaijani troops.

The attendees of the event laid flowers near the plaque commemorating the heroes who sacrificed their lives for Maraga 25 years ago.

The pupils recited inspiring poems and poems devoted to the battle, and Merited Artist of the Republic of Armenia, Honorary Citizen of Martakert Shushan Petrosyan performed Armenian patriotic songs.

Among the attendees were deputy head of the regional administration of Martakert Radik Arushanyan, doctors of Maraga, guests and others.

Photos by Lusine Zakaryan