Brussels conference backs right of return for Western Azerbaijanis

A Brussels conference has called for the right of return for Western Azerbaijanis, citing international law and historic displacement.

An international conference held in Brussels has brought renewed attention to the right of Western Azerbaijanis to return to their historical lands, organisers said on Tuesday.

The event was co-hosted by the Western Azerbaijan Community (WAC) and the French NGO CAP Freedom of Conscience, drawing legal experts, researchers and civil society representatives from Belgium, France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Italy and Azerbaijan.

Participants discussed the deportation of Azerbaijanis throughout the 20th century, arguing that the right of return is protected under international legal frameworks including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Aziz Alekberli, Chairman of the WAC, said that Azerbaijanis had been “systematically and gradually” expelled from their ancestral territories and had suffered material losses totalling “billions of dollars” [CHECK]. He accused Armenian authorities of destroying cultural heritage sites and refusing dialogue with the Community.

Alekberli added that the WAC supports Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s efforts to promote regional coexistence and expressed hope that progress made during an 8 August meeting in Washington would contribute to long-term peace in the South Caucasus.

A photo exhibition on destroyed Azerbaijani cultural sites accompanied the conference.

Copied