34 years pass since Garakand helicopter tragedy

Today marks 34 years since the downing of an Azerbaijani Mi-8 helicopter over the village of Garakand in the Khojavand district by Armenian armed formations.

The tragedy occurred on November 20, 1991. All 22 people on board were killed, including prominent Azerbaijani state officials, journalists, and members of a joint Russian-Kazakh peacekeeping mission.

Those on board were:

Tofiq Kazim oghlu Ismayilov - State Secretary

Ismat Ismayil oghlu Gayibov - Prosecutor General

Mahammad Nabi oghlu Asadov - Minister of Internal Affairs

Zulfi Saleh oghlu Hajiyev - Deputy Prime Minister

Vagif Jafar oghlu Jafarov - Member of Parliament

Vali Huseyn oghlu Mammadov - Member of Parliament

Osman Mirzahuseyn oghlu Mirzoyev - Head of Department, Presidential Administration

Gurban Huseyn oghlu Namazaliyev - Deputy Minister

Igor Aleksandrovich Plavitsky - Prosecutor of the NKAO

Vladimir Vladimirovich Kovalev - Head of Internal Affairs Directorate of the NKAO

Sergey Semyonovich Ivanov - Head of National Security for Nagorno-Karabakh

Nikolay Vladimirovich Zhinkin - Commander of the State of Emergency Zone

Sanlal Dasumovich Serikov - Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs of Kazakhstan

Mikhail Dmitriyevich Lukashov - Major General of Police

Oleg Nikolayevich Kocherov - Lieutenant Colonel

Rafig Mammad oghlu Mammadov - Assistant to the State Secretary

Ali Mustafa oghlu Mustafayev - Television journalist

Arif Ismayil oghlu Huseynzada - AzTV lighting technician

Fakhraddin Ibrahim oghlu Shahbazov - Video operator

Vyacheslav Vladimirovich Kotov - Helicopter commander

Gennady Vladimirovich Domov - Helicopter crew member

Dmitry Borisovich Yarovenko - Helicopter crew member

At first, there was a version that the helicopter had crashed into a rock due to fog, but within a few days the fact that it had been shot down was confirmed. By carrying out this terrorist act, Armenian separatists once again demonstrated their commitment to a terrorist ideology.

The village of Garakand was liberated from occupation in 2023.