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The event was attended by the Head of the Guba District Executive Authority, Ilgar Mahmudov; Members of Parliament Alibala Maharramzade and Mushfig Mammadli; Head of the Cultural Heritage Protection Department of the State Service, Sabuhı Bashirov; leaders and staff of several district organizations of the New Azerbaijan Party (YAP); representatives of law enforcement agencies; local executive authorities; heads of institutions and organizations; media representatives; as well as thousands of citizens.

First, the participants visited the monument of National Leader Heydar Aliyev and laid flowers in front of it. They then visited the memorial monument located within the Complex and afterwards toured the Genocide Museum, where they became acquainted with historical facts and the organized exhibition.

Following the visit, participants took part in a tree-planting campaign near the Memorial Complex dedicated to the memory of the genocide victims.

The commemorative event, which continued throughout the day, was attended by thousands of people.

It should be noted that in 2007, during excavation works carried out for construction purposes in the city of Guba, a mass grave was discovered by chance. This grave became clear evidence of the genocide committed against the Muslim population of Guba in May 1918 by Armenian armed groups acting under the Bolshevik banner. In order to convey these truths to the international community, preserve the national memory of future generations, and commemorate the victims of genocide, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev issued a decree on December 30, 2009, on the establishment of the Genocide Memorial Complex in Guba. The Complex was built in 2012–2013 with the support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation on the left bank of the Gudyalchay River, on the site of a former stadium, and was officially opened on September 18, 2013.

Afterwards, the officials toured the Genocide Museum, where they familiarized themselves with historical facts and the organized exhibition.

Before the event, participants visited the monument where the victims of 1918 are buried, honored their memory with respect, and laid flowers at the site. Afterwards, they visited the Genocide Museum and became closely acquainted with materials reflecting the traces of the tragedy.

The official part of the event then began.

In her speech, the Deputy Director of the Genocide Memorial Complex, Mehriban Aliyeva, spoke about the results of archaeological research conducted at the Guba mass burial site, the historical significance of the discovered mass graves, and the efforts made to present these facts to the international academic community. She also noted that research carried out in this direction makes an important contribution to presenting the history objectively.

Later, a representative of the Guba regional “ASAN Service” center of the “ASAN Volunteers” Organization and a representative of the Youth Development and Career Center delivered speeches emphasizing the importance of engaging young people in research on history and heritage. They noted that such events contribute to the development of their research skills and increase their social activity.

Prior to the event, the university’s director and staff visited the monument where the victims of the 1918 events are buried, honored their memory with respect, and laid flowers at the site. Afterwards, participants visited the Genocide Museum and familiarized themselves with exhibits reflecting the tragic events of that period. The event then continued with its official part. The participants first observed a one-minute silence in memory of the victims of the 1918 genocide. Speaking at the event, the Deputy Director of the Genocide Memorial Complex, Mehriban Aliyeva, addressed the historical essence of the genocide policy carried out against the Azerbaijani people in 1918, emphasizing that these events represent not only a national tragedy but also a tragedy of universal significance. Subsequently, Tanzila Yusifova, Director of the Shamakhi branch of ASPU, noted that such commemorative ceremonies play an important role in educating students and young people in the spirit of patriotism. She also emphasized that studying the tragedies faced by the Azerbaijani people and conveying them to the international community is the duty of every intellectual. At the end of the event, a map-booklet reflecting the locations where the Shamakhi massacres took place was presented to the participants by the Genocide Memorial Complex.

Today, the Complex was visited by leaders and staff members of the Nizami and Guba District Organizations of the New Azerbaijan Party, young people, as well as the chairperson and members of the Public Union of Women Entrepreneurs. The visitors were provided with detailed information about the genocide events.

The event was attended by the Rector of Azerbaijan State Oil and Industry University, Associate Professor Rufat Azizov, as well as the university’s faculty members and students.

Opening the event, the Deputy Director of the Genocide Memorial Complex, Mehriban Aliyeva, spoke about the importance of studying the events of 1918—one of the tragic chapters in Azerbaijan’s history—and passing this knowledge on to future generations. She also provided participants with information about the activities of the Complex.

Afterwards, the Rector of Azerbaijan State Oil and Industry University, Associate Professor Rufat Azizov, emphasized in his speech that the March 1918 massacres, in terms of their brutality and scale, are among the bloodiest tragedies not only in the history of Azerbaijan but also in human history. He stated that Armenian armed groups, taking advantage of the situation, carried out mass killings of civilians regardless of age or gender. Along with tens of thousands of Azerbaijanis, thousands of people belonging to Lezgin, Jewish, Russian, Avar, and Talysh ethnic groups were killed, stabbed, and even burned alive. National architectural monuments, schools, hospitals, mosques, and cultural heritage sites were destroyed, and a large part of Baku was reduced to ruins.

At the end of the event, students toured the museum of the Memorial Complex and received detailed information about documents, photographic materials, and archaeological findings related to the genocide.

The conference began with the performance of the National Anthem, followed by a one-minute silence in memory of the martyrs who lost their lives for the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan and the victims of genocide.

Opening the event, the Director of the Complex, Dr. Rakhshanda Bayramova, emphasized the importance of thoroughly researching Azerbaijan’s historical truths—particularly the realities of the 1918 genocide—studying them on a scientific basis, and conveying them to the international community. She spoke about the significance of ongoing efforts in this direction. She noted that starting from March 31, 1918, in the city of Baku and various regions of the Baku Governorate, as well as in Shamakhi, Guba, Khachmaz, Lankaran, Hajigabul, Salyan, Zangezur, Karabakh, Nakhchivan, and other territories, the forces of the Baku Soviet and Dashnak Armenian armed groups carried out massacres against the civilian population. The events of the 1918 genocide were given a legal and political assessment by the Decree “On the Genocide of Azerbaijanis,” signed on March 26, 1998, by National Leader Heydar Aliyev, which for the first time officially declared that Azerbaijanis had been subjected to genocide by Armenians.

Adil Bakhshaliyev, Dean of the Faculty of History and Geography at Sumgayit State University, Doctor of Historical Sciences and Professor, spoke about the true nature of the genocide and aggressive policies carried out against the Azerbaijani people by Armenian nationalists over the past 200 years, including on March 31, 1918. He stated that this genocide is one of the bloodiest pages in history. As a result of the March genocide, nearly 12,000 Azerbaijanis were killed in Baku alone, more than 50,000 Turkic-Muslim people were destroyed across the South Caucasus, and tens of thousands went missing.

At the conference, Associate Professor Sona Maharramova, Head of the Department of History, Geography and Methodology at the university, delivered a presentation titled “Ethnic Cleansing and Deportations Against Azerbaijanis in Western Azerbaijan in 1918.” She presented an analysis of the tragic events of that period based on historical sources and spoke in detail about the causes and consequences of violence, massacres, and forced displacement inflicted on the Azerbaijani population, emphasizing their serious impact on the region’s demographic situation.

Subsequent presentations were delivered by Associate Professor Yusifali Hasanov on “The March 31, 1918 Genocide: Massacres in Baku,” Associate Professor Samir Karimli on “Massacres Committed in the Shamakhi Region of Azerbaijan in 1918,” fourth-year student Sona Hasanova on “Massacres Committed in the Guba Region in 1918,” fourth-year student Rahil Jafarov on “Massacres Committed in the Karabakh Region of Azerbaijan in 1918,” and Senior Lecturer Nofal Abdullayev on “The Legal and Political Assessment of the 1918 Genocide of Azerbaijanis.”

At the end of the event, teachers and students were provided with information about documents, photographic materials, and archaeological findings related to the genocide exhibited in the museum of the Complex.

The webinar, moderated by the Deputy Director of the Memorial Complex, Mehriban Aliyeva, featured speeches addressing the historical essence of the 1918 genocide events, the consequences of the massacres committed against the Azerbaijani people, and the importance of conveying these events to the international community.

Vafa Aliyeva, a researcher at the Ganja State Historical and Cultural Reserve, emphasized the importance of studying the March 1918 events on the basis of historical facts. She spoke about the necessity of preserving the memory of the massacres committed against Azerbaijanis during that period and passing this knowledge on to future generations.

Afterwards, Tahmina Aliyeva, a specialist at the Genocide Memorial Complex in Guba and a Doctor of Philosophy in History, provided detailed information to the webinar participants about the massacres committed against the Azerbaijani population in Guba and surrounding regions in 1918, as well as the historical significance of archaeological research and the discovery of mass graves.

The webinar was attended by nearly 30 employees from reserves operating under the State Service for the Protection, Development, and Restoration of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Azerbaijan.