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writes in this book “Red Terror”: “roughly 70-80 thousand Azerbaijani
intellectuals were killed in the years 1936-1937.” (26)
The crimes committed by Armenians against the civilians in Shemakhi
began with arrival of 400 Armenian soldiers, coming from Russian-Turkish
front at the beginning of March 1918, to Shamakhi from Kurdamir. Having been
unaware of their goal, Baku Muslim Committee informed the head of the
Shamakhi city Teymurbey Khudaverdiyev and requested him to render
assistance to Armenian solders coming to Shamakhi. To this end, the delegation
was sent to Agsu to meet them. However, the delegation was informed that the
Armenian solders had attacked vulnerable villages, such as Bidjo and Lengebiz.
During the shooting several Muslims and Armenians were shot dead. Armenians
immediately informed Baku Armenian Committee about this event. Thus the
Committee sent the well-equipped 3000 Armenians to Shamakhi to completely
remove the local population. Having known of this event the local department of
Muslim Committee sent the head of the Shamakhi province Hadji Jamalbeyov,
head of the province Abdulkhalig Afandi Afandiyev and Armenian bishop to
conduct talks to them. Then the delegation asked them to go back. Head of the
Armenian criminal gang responded “we have come here to utterly destroy
Shamakhi and entirely kill the Muslim population”.
Afterwards the delegation returned to Shamakhi and searched for way-
outs. The following day Armenian bishop Bagrat and the representative of
Malakans Karabanov came to Shamakhi department of Muslim Committee and
pledged to coexist with Azerbaijanis in peace and friendship and never fight
with them. The next day, at 06 a.m. in March 18, 1918, the Armenians
surrounded Shamakhi and began shooting using 100 machine guns and other
ammunitions. Afterwards, fire began in several parts of the city. In the evening
of the same day the vulnerable population of the city was forced to surrender.
Later Armenians began to loot the city and kill the civilians. The remaining
constructions were burned in the city and the cemeteries adjacent to the city
were abused. The savage Armenians used special brutalities in Shamakhi. That
is, they cut off legs, arms, noses, and ears, chopped off eyes, cut bellies of the
dead people, burnt and eventually killed them with special brutalities.
Shamakhi events was described in the article, number 19 of 1918
“Azerbaijan” newspaper, and was noted that the crime committed towards
Shamakhi Muslims by S. Lalayev was unprecedented. The brutality of Lalayev,
who headed Shamakhi massacre, reached to the extent that even T. Amirov and
I. Bogomolov showed their dissatisfaction.
The address of I. Bogomolov to A. Chaparidze reads: “Once again I ask
you to arrest savage Lalayev. He killed a number of women and children and
looted houses. When Amirov wanted to arrest him he evaded. All confirmed that
he burnt the mosque and eventually killed many women”. But Chaparidze did
not give any feedback to this address because he was aware of objection of
51
Shaumyan, who supported Lalayev, to the chairman of Military Investigation
Commission Kojemyakoy on the arrest of Lalayev. (27)
Along with the anti-Turk and anti-Muslim policy of Russian and
Armenian nationalists in committing the crimes with brutality in Shamakhi, S.
Lalayev's personal hatred and hostility to local population played a certain role.
He committed unprecedented brutalities against the civilians in Shamakhi in
order to avenge his father and uncle, who were killed in the Armenian-Muslim
turmoil in 1905-1096. However, facts demonstrate that his father and uncle were
victims of their own criminal activity in 1905 -1906. According to the records of
Baku Mikhailov hospital, in February 6, 1905, terror group killed 18 civilians
and injured 33 people with the support of Armenian magnates Balabek Lalayev,
Artyom Babayants, Isay Terosipov and others. 34 of them were Azerbaijanis,
while 6 were Russians and others belonged to other nationalities. The criminal
gang killed roughly 100 civilians and wounded others in the following days.
(28)
The extent of the Armenian crimes in Shamakhi was so unprecedented
that even the Bolshevik press of the time could not hide its attitude to this
tragedy. However, they described these atrocities against the Muslim population
as “some injustice was done to local population”.
Thousands of Muslims were killed in Shamakhi in a few days under the
leadership of S. Lalayev and T. Amirov. The Muslims were included prominent
people of Shamakhi, such as Molla Jafarguluakhund, head of the city
Teymurbey Khudaverdov, deputy to the first state Duma from Shamakhi
Mammed Aliyev, Molla Haji Mehyeddinefendi, Hajibaba Abbasov, Ashraf
Hajiyev, Haji Abdul Khalil Ahmedov, Agha Ahmed Ahmedov, Haji Gany
Zeynal , Haji Abdul Hussein Zeynalov, Haji Israfil Mammadov, Mir Ibrahim
Seidov, Haji Ibrahim Salamov, Haji Abdul-Gasim Gasimov, Eyyubaga Veysov,
Zeynab
Veysova,
Aliabbasbey
Ibrahimbeyov,
Alakbar
Gadirbeyov,
Abdurrehimagha Agalarov, Zekeriyye effendi Mehdi Khalil, Ziyaddin
Abdullayev, Haji Molla Hasan Zeynalov, Mahmud Hajiagaoglu and many
others. During this period, 13 district mosques and well-known holy site Juma
mosque, one of the most ancientones in the South Caucasus and in the Middle
East, built in the 743 were burnt by Armenians. This mosque was dear to
Muslims as a holy site and as an ancient monument. Many women and children
were taken to the refuge in the mosque. They thought that Armenians could not
dear to attack the mosque with the presence of Molla Jafargulu Akhund, who
had great authority among the population. However, the Armenian gangsters
chopped off akhund's eyes and cut off his tongue, ear and nose as they entered
the mosque. Moreover, they cut his entire skin as he was alive and shot him
dead afterwards. Later,the civilians were put together into the mosque and were
burnt. (29)