Gugark pogrom
The Gugark pogrom[1] was a pogrom directed against the Azerbaijani minority of the Gugark District (now a part of the Lori Province) in the Armenian SSR, then part of the Soviet Union.[2][3][4][5]
The pogrom of Azerbaijanis in Gugark in March 1988 followed the earlier pogrom of Armenians in Sumgait in the end of February 1988.[4] The persecution of the Azerbaijanis continued until virtually all of them fled the region.[3] The pogrom was one of the acts of ethnic violence in the context of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which would later erupt into a war.
Azerbaijani sources label the pogrom as a "massacre" (Azerbaijani: Quqark qırğını/qətliamı).[6][7][8]
Gugark District, called Boyuk Garakilsa (Azerbaijani: Böyük Qarakilsə, lit. 'Big Black Church') by its Azerbaijani inhabitants,[9] was one of the districts of the Armenian SSR, then part of the Soviet Union.[10] There were ethnic Azerbaijanis living compactly in this area. Following the dissolution of Soviet Union, the district became part of the independent Republic of Armenia, replaced with the Lori Province.[11]
Following Kirovabad pogrom, the Armenian refugees from Ganja poured into Gugark district via Georgia.[12] The tensions between the ethnic Armenians and Azerbaijanis in Armenia were high, as both were afraid of an attack from the other side.[13]
The ethnic confrontation between the Armenians and the Azerbaijanis started in March 1988. The Armenians attacked the Azerbaijani houses,[14][15] while the local authorities recorded beatings and robberies of Azerbaijanis by the Armenians, including at their workplaces. Armenians beat Azerbaijani traders in the marketplace, and stole their produce.[13]
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