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A commemorative event dedicated to January 20—the National Day of Mourning—was held at the Institute of Radiation Problems of the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The Republic of Azerbaijan's National Anthem was played first, and then there was a minute of silence in memory of our martyrs.

In his introductory remarks, Professor Islam Mustafayev, the general director of the scientific institution and corresponding member of ANAS, stressed that the events of January 20 were both a tragic setback for the Azerbaijani independence movement and a momentous occasion in our nation's history. He pointed out that despite the Soviet Union's secret services' best efforts to subdue the unarmed civilians with massive machinery and a variety of weapons, the people's resolve would not be broken. During those trying times, our brave boys and daughters sacrificed their lives in front of Russian army tanks, becoming the pinnacle of martyrdom. This incident was a turning point in the restoration of our state's independence and had a significant impact on the development of our national identity.

I. Mustafayev stressed that the personnel of the institute he headed had also been directly involved in our people's struggle for liberation thirty-four years ago and said that among the scientists and experts of the scientific institution were Patriotic War participants. The scientist pointed out that, following the massacre on January 20, Karabakh was invaded under the Russian Empire's banner. Our nation has undergone a number of political processes in the last thirty years. But our people and our state did not give up hope that they would return to our ancestral territories that were under occupation: "Under the command of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Commander-in-Chief Mr. Ilham Aliyev, our Glorious Army liberated our territories from occupation during the 44-day Patriotic War in 2020. This triumph is the victory of justice in our righteous struggle, the victory of the unity of our people, the head of state, and our army, and it paved the way for the liberation of Aghdara, Askaran, Khojaly, Khojavand, and Khankendi in a one-day battle last year."

Then, associate professor Ravan Mehdiyeva, the institute's executive director and a doctor of philosophy in physics and mathematics, emphasized that the institute's staff members were actively engaged in the fighting during the massacre that the Russian empire, which supported the Dashnak Armenians, had caused. Speaking of Armenian hypocrisy, the scientist pointed out that the adversary has continued his sneaky attacks even now, having not yet complied with the Declaration signed on November 10, 2020, by President Ilham Aliyev of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Russian President Vladimir Putin, and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. She stated that the world had already witnessed the real face of the Armenian Dashnaks, who are far less developed militarily and economically and who, as is customary, attempt to portray themselves to the international community and other nations as helpless people.

The heads of the institute's laboratories—Ph.D. in physics, associate professor Famil Khumbatov, Ph.D. in chemistry, associate professor Khagani Mammadov, Ph.D. in physics, associate professor Ogtay Salamov, leading researcher, Ph.D. in physics, associate professor Nabi Aliyev, and employee of the institute, Fakhraddin Abasov—spoke at the event. Speaking about their memories of the event, speakers said that the bloody crime that occurred was actually another mass deportation of Azerbaijanis from their ancestral homeland, Yerevan, and that beginning in 1987—when attempts to unite Karabakh with Armenia began to gain traction—the USSR's leadership openly supported the hateful ideology of the Dashnak Armenians.

It was stated that the great leader Heydar Aliyev, who understood the gravity of the situation, was the first to offer a political analysis of the January 20 massacre, in which Armenian Dashnaks and mercenary soldiers confronted the civilian populace. On the day after the tragedy, the national leader visited the permanent embassy of Azerbaijan in Moscow and accused the leadership of the republic and the USSR, primarily Gorbachev, as the main culprits of the massacre. The resolution "On the tragic events committed in Baku on January 20, 1990," issued on his initiative on March 29, 1994, presented a thorough political and legal appraisal of this catastrophe at the state level.

In closing, Professor Islam Mustafayev, the head of the scientific institution, said that the Azerbaijani flag is flying proudly in Khankendi and other liberated lands, infrastructure is being renewed, and schools and universities are being restored because of the valor of the Glorious Azerbaijan Army. In addition to wishing God's mercy on our martyrs and recovery for our veterans, the director general called on the institute's scientists and professionals to offer scientific support to state programs aimed at the growth of our nation. He underlined that the supporters of our independence's restoration and the first freedom messengers interred in the Alley of Martyrs would always be alive in the hearts of our people!

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