The
Khojaly Massacre, also known as the
Khojaly tragedy, was the killing of at least 161 ethnic
Azerbaijani civilians from the town of
Khojaly on 25–26 February 1992 by the
Armenian and, partially, by
CIS armed forces during the
Nagorno-Karabakh War. According to the Azerbaijani side, as well as
Memorial Human Rights Center,
Human Rights Watch and other international observers, the
massacre was committed by the ethnic
Armenian armed forces, reportedly with help of the Russian 366th Motor Rifle Regiment, apparently not acting on orders from the command. The death toll claimed by Azerbaijani authorities is 613 civilians, including 106 women and 63 children. The event became the largest massacre in the course of Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.