Azerbaijan has again used a famous photo of Armenian volunteer Sargis Hatspanyan in their propaganda. A painting copyed from the picture taken in 1993 was recently showcased at an exhibition in Berlin.

Per a report from Haqqin.az, a group of young Azerbaijani artists and sculptors showed their works to the residents of Berlin on February 26.

A photograph from the exhibition reveals that one of the students of the Azerbaijan State Academy of Arts has reproduced the photo of Hatspanyan and an elderly Azerbaijani woman and titled her picture “Hope”.

The original photo was taken by photographer Zaven Khachikyan in 1993 during the days of the liberation of Qarvachar. Hatspanyan himself has described the day when hundreds of peaceful Azerbaijani civilians, mostly elderly people, children and women, were left behind by Azeri fighters. When Sargis and his friends entered the village and greeted a group of women in their native language, the 80-year-old woman named Shekhi khanum scolded him for being late as "the Armenians would soon be here." Sargis realized that the woman had taken them for Azerbaijani soldiers and said that "the Armenians had already come." Khachikyan then took the moment to secretly snap the two having a friendly conversation.

Azerbaijanis have repeatedly tried to use the photo in their propaganda, coming up various legends about its origin: this time they linked the image with the events in Khojaly.