Sumgait Pogroms are in line with Auschwitz crimes - expert

February 26, 2012 - 17:15 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net - Pogroms of Armenians in the Azeri town of Sumgait became the first outbreak of ethnic violence in modern Soviet history, a Ukrainian political observer said.

“Sumgait Pogroms are in line with such crimes against humanity as tortures at Auschwitz concentration camps or Katyn Forest massacre,” Analitika.at.ua quoted Dmitry Petrenko as saying.

“Sumgait violence was further authorized by the inaction of local law enforcement bodies, USSR leadership and an overall incompetency resulting in failure to prevent the tragedy,” the expert noted.

“Throughout its history, humankind has proved unable to realize that violence only begets further violence. While it's impossible to heel the wounds of those who have fallen victim to atrocity, we must use the bitter experience to prevent such crimes in future,” he concluded.

The Sumgait Pogrom

The Sumgait Pogrom was the Azeri-led pogrom that targeted the Armenian population living in the Azerbaijani seaside town of Sumgait in February 1988. On February 27, 1988, large mobs made up of Azeris formed into groups that went on to attack and kill Armenians in both on the streets and in their apartments; widespread looting and a general lack of concern from police officers allowed the situation to worsen. The violent acts in Sumgait were unprecedented in scope in the Soviet Union and attracted a great deal of attention from the media in the West. The massacre came in light of the Nagorno-Karabakh movement that was gaining traction in the neighbouring Armenia SSR.