Thirty years ago, from 13 to 19 January 1990, tens of thousands of Armenians fell victim to a brutal massacre and were forcibly displaced in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.
On 13 January 1990, the Azerbaijani Popular Front, under the patronage of the country’s authorities, organised the pogroms against the Armenian population of Baku.
On the same day, following a mass rally of many thousands, the crowd split into groups, broke into the homes of Armenians at pre-designated addresses, and began acts of violence and brutal killings. The law-enforcement bodies, the employees of the communal services administration, and even ambulance doctors aided the pogroms. The pogroms continued for 6 days.
Only on 19 January, when Soviet authority in Baku was endangered, did M. Gorbachev sign a decree on introducing a state of emergency in Baku.
After the pogroms, Baku was emptied of Armenians: around 250,000 Armenians were killed, displaced, or went missing.
