Category: Azer News

In accordance with the instructions of President Ilham Aliyev, the Great Return to Azerbaijan’s liberated territories continues in a phased and systematic manner. As part of the latest stage of resettlement, 30 families – a total of 115 people – have been relocated to Horovlu village in the Jabrayil district.

AzerNEWS reports that the families moving to Horovlu had previously been temporarily settled in various parts of the country, primarily in dormitories, sanatoriums, and administrative buildings. For more than three decades, they lived as internally displaced persons, separated from their native lands.

Residents returning to their homes expressed deep gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev and First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva for the comprehensive state care and support provided during the resettlement process. They also conveyed their appreciation to the Azerbaijani Armed Forces, whose victory made the return possible, and paid tribute to the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the liberation of the country’s territories.

Mahluqa Ismayilova, a 63-year-old former IDP returning to Horovlu, described the day as one of the happiest moments of her life. Speaking to the local media outlets, she recalled the hardships of displacement.

‘For more than 30 years, we lived away from our homeland. When we left the village, my husband and I took our children with us as displaced persons. Today, my children have grown up and started families of their own. Now I am returning to my native village with my daughter and grandchildren,’ she said.

She remembered that life before displacement had been peaceful and fulfilling, but the years that followed were marked by severe difficulties. ‘We lived in tents, settlements, and temporary shelters. When it rained, water leaked through the roofs, and we did not know where to take cover. Those were very hard days,’ she noted. ‘Today, I thank God that I am returning to my homeland. May Allah rest our martyrs in peace and grant health to our veterans. Thanks to them, our lands are free.’

Another returnee, Nizami Kalbaliyev, emphasized that more than three decades had passed since they were forced to leave. ‘I was 35 or 36 when we left. Now I am over 70. Returning to my village at this age is a great happiness for me,’ he said.

Kalbaliyev added that his family had lived in various regions during the years of displacement, including Salyan, Baku, and Masazir settlement. At one point, they stayed in a dormitory of the Azerbaijan State Oil and Industry University. ‘The life of an internally displaced person was very difficult. But today, we are achieving our dream and returning to our native land,’ he said, expressing gratitude to the martyrs and veterans whose sacrifice ensured the country’s territorial integrity.

Aida Mammadova, another former IDP returning to Horovlu, said her family had waited 33 years for this day. ‘My son was seven years old when we were displaced. Today, he is returning to his homeland with his own family and child. We thank God that we have lived to see this day,’ she stated.

The resettlement of families to Horovlu marks another milestone in Azerbaijan’s post-conflict reconstruction agenda. For the returning residents, however, it represents something far deeper – the restoration of memory, identity, and the right to live once again on their ancestral land.

To recall, Horovlu village was occupied during the First Karabakh War in the early 1990s. It was liberated on October 4, 2020, during the 44-day Patriotic War. Throughout the nearly 30 years of occupation, the village was completely destroyed.

On May 4, 2023, President Ilham Aliyev visited Horovlu village and participated in the groundbreaking ceremony marking the start of reconstruction efforts. The rebuilding of the settlement forms part of a broader state program aimed at restoring infrastructure, housing, and social facilities across the liberated territories.

Azerbaijan and Armenia are holding discussions on expanding trade, AzerNEWS reports, citing Armenian Economy Minister Gevorq Papoyan.

Speaking to local media, the minister confirmed that the two sides have exchanged lists of products they could potentially supply to one another. ‘Azerbaijan gave us a list of numerous goods it can export to Armenia, and in turn we presented our own list to them. There will be trade,’ Papoyan stated. ‘I am confident that there is bilateral trade potential worth hundreds of millions of dollars.’

For more than three decades, the two countries had no trade relations following the outbreak of the Karabakh War in the early 1990s. Armenia occupied Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region and held it under control for over 30 years. . In 2020, Azerbaijan regained control of its territories, ending the occupation.

Last year, limited trade relations began with Azerbaijan’s oil exports to Armenia. Analysts believe this could mark the beginning of broader commercial ties, with both sides now exploring opportunities to expand the scope of trade.

as part of her visit to the Guba district, Leyla Aliyeva visited beekeeper Zafer Azizov at his home.

As reported by AzerNEWS, during the meeting, Leyla Aliyeva had a warm conversation with the beekeeper’s family and took a close interest in the daily operations of their farm. Zafer Azizov provided detailed information about his experience in beekeeping and the family-owned ‘Balli P?t?k’ brand. He noted that he began professional beekeeping in 1997 with just two bee colonies, and that the number has now exceeded 200.

He added that since 2010, the family business has expanded under the ‘Balli P?t?k’ brand, offering meadow, forest, and mountain honey to the market. Azizov emphasized that to obtain honey and other bee products, he transports the bee colonies to various regions, including Khachmaz, Shabran, Gusar, Guba, and others. It was noted that the farm, with an annual production capacity of 2-3 tons, also produces valuable products such as royal jelly, pollen, and bee bread. In addition, Azizov is engaged in breeding queen bees.

Continuing the meeting in a friendly atmosphere, Leyla Aliyeva joined the family in making natural beeswax candles.

Beekeeper Zafer Azizov and his family expressed their gratitude to Leyla Aliyeva for her sincere visit and attention, and presented her with a gift.

Leyla Aliyeva attends Iftar ceremony in Quba [PHOTOS]

_: On February 24, Leyla Aliyeva attended an iftar ceremony in Quba together with families of martyrs and members of the local community.

Leyla Aliyeva first joined volunteers of the “Bizim M?tb?x” (Our Kitchen) project and personally took part in preparing meals for the iftar table. During the ceremony, where the spiritual values of the holy month of Ramadan were shared, participants broke their fast together and prayers were offered.

Local residents expressed their sincere gratitude for the organization of the iftar dinner and for the attention and care shown to them.

A post commemorating the 34th anniversary of the Khojaly genocide has been shared on the social media accounts of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev.

Astronomers have identified an extraordinary galaxy composed almost entirely of dark matter. According to the journal Science, the discovery was made during the analysis of archival images from the Hubble Space Telescope, AzerNEWS reports.

The galaxy, dubbed CDG-2, is extremely faint and contains very few stars. Scientists estimate that over 99.9% of its total mass consists of dark matter, making it one of the most mysterious cosmic structures ever observed.

CDG-2 was detected in the Perseus galaxy cluster, about 240 million light-years from Earth. Subsequent observations from the European Euclid Space Telescope confirmed a faint glow, likely produced by the few stars that formed before the galaxy lost the gas necessary for star formation.

If CDG-2’s existence is confirmed, it could provide strong evidence for the theory that some galaxies in the Universe are almost entirely devoid of stars, consisting primarily of dark matter. This challenges our understanding of galaxy formation and the role of visible matter in the cosmos.

Interestingly, this is not the first dark galaxy ever discovered. Astronomers at the Green Bank Observatory in West Virginia, USA, previously found a completely dark galaxy known as J0613+52. Unlike CDG-2, J0613+52 contains abundant primordial gas but no visible stars. Located about 270 million light-years from Earth, it may be the faintest galaxy ever detected.

Discoveries like CDG-2 and J0613+52 open a new frontier in astrophysics, revealing the hidden scaffolding of the Universe built from dark matter. Scientists hope that studying these ‘invisible’ galaxies will help unravel one of the greatest mysteries in cosmology: what dark matter is and how it shapes the Universe.

On February 24, a ceremonial cutting of the next set of carpets for the Shusha Mosque was held at the Shabran branch of Azerkhalcha Open Joint-Stock Company, organized by the Heydar Aliyev Foundation, PASHA Holding, and PMD Projects, AzerNEWS reports. The carpets were created through the joint efforts of Azerkhalcha’s creative team and skilled master weavers.

The event was attended by Leyla Aliyeva, who toured the workshop, met with the weavers, and participated in the ceremonial cutting after the final finishing touches had been added to the carpets.

These carpets, designed for the second floor of the Shusha Mosque, were crafted according to traditional Azerbaijani carpet-making techniques and feature unique, custom designs. Each carpet measures 12 meters in width and 19 meters in length, giving a total combined length of 38 meters. They are intended for the area of the mosque reserved for women’s prayers. The weaving process began on January 21, 2025, in Shabran, with nearly 50 female weavers contributing around 50 million knots to the creation of the two carpets.

The carpets showcase the highest level of Azerbaijani craftsmanship and the richness of the country’s artistic heritage. To complete the weaving, two specially designed looms were commissioned and crafted exclusively for Azerkhalcha OJSC by a team of international specialists, incorporating innovative new techniques.

This follows the recent cutting ceremony for a circular hand-woven carpet on the mosque’s first floor, which measures 22.17 meters in diameter and has no parallel in world carpet-making history. That exceptional piece, created based on motifs from the “Karabakh” carpet group and “Khatai” ornaments, involved 150 female weavers and approximately 60 million knots, with Leyla Aliyeva also attending the event.

Through these extraordinary works, Azerbaijani carpet-making continues to demonstrate its unmatched skill, intricate artistry, and deep cultural legacy, bringing both beauty and tradition to one of the country’s most iconic spiritual sites.

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their daughter Arzu Aliyeva visited Khojavend town to inspect the reconstruction progress, AzerNEWS reports.

The head of state, the First Lady, and their daughter met with residents of Khojavend town and Khojavend village and held a conversation with them.

President Ilham Aliyev: Welcome. Congratulations. You arrived a few days earlier than me. I sincerely congratulate you on your return to our native Garabagh land. I am confident that you will live here comfortably, happily, in peace and security. You deserve this.

You endured long years of suffering and hardship. Life as an internally displaced person is difficult – both morally and physically. Leaving your native land and going elsewhere, even within Azerbaijan, and living in hardship is a great trial. You emerged from this trial with honor. I am sure that the entire Azerbaijani people, including you, always believed that this day would come – that we would liberate these lands, restore justice, and drive the enemy out of our territories.

As you know, although a large part of the formerly occupied lands was liberated five years ago during the Patriotic War, Khojavend remained under occupation, and the people of Khojavend believed that the situation would change someday. I am confident there was faith in society that not even one inch of our land would remain under the enemy’s heel – and we achieved that as well. For more than two years now, we have exercised full control over the entire sovereign territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan. We destroyed the enemy’s last stronghold, expelled the separatists, brought them before the court, and fully restored justice.

Therefore, that difficult period is now behind us – it is in the past and will never return. Today, our state is strong, our army is strong, and our people have shown the whole world their greatness over these years. In the last 80 years, no other country has achieved such a complete and absolute victory as Azerbaijan.

Now is the time for construction. The state has already created conditions for you here. Some houses have been restored and rebuilt, and this process will continue. Tens of thousands of Azerbaijani citizens are already living in the liberated territories, and approximately 30,000 of them are former internally displaced persons. As you know, over the last four to five years, we have primarily allocated funds to infrastructure projects because the essential conditions for living must first be ensured – electricity, gas, water, roads, bridges, and tunnels. Now, more funds will be directed toward the construction and restoration of residential houses. Therefore, the ‘Great Return’ process will accelerate even further.

Jobs are also being created here – through the state, public institutions, and, of course, the private sector. The majority of people living here were previously engaged in agriculture. You know well that this region has beautiful nature, fertile land, water, and springs – everything necessary is here. The main thing is that people now live here comfortably and remain fully confident that such tragedies will never again befall our people.

To ensure this, we must always remain strong and vigilant, never forget the past, and look to the future with confidence – just as we look with confidence and live today. I sincerely congratulate you once again and wish you good health.

x x x

Commemorative photos were taken.

x x x

The residents expressed their gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev for the conditions created for them.

United States President Donald Trump addressed the State of the Union, emphasizing Iran’s nuclear program, AzerNEWS reports.

He said the US “will never allow the world’s number one sponsor of terror … to have a nuclear weapon.” Trump added that he prefers to handle the situation through diplomacy, signaling a desire to avoid military confrontation despite maintaining pressure on Tehran.

Trump also claimed Iran is advancing missile technology capable of striking US territory. “They’ve already developed missiles that can threaten Europe and our bases overseas and they’re working to build missiles that will soon reach the United States of America,” he said.

Hours before the State of the Union, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a briefing on Iran for Congress’ ‘Gang of Eight’ – comprised of the leaders of the Senate and House of Representatives and the two chambers’ intelligence committees.

‘First and foremost, if they want to do something in Iran – and who the hell knows what it is – they should make it public and discuss it with the public and not keep it in secret. When you do these military operations in secret, it always causes longer wars, tragedy, more expenses and mistake(s),’ Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer told a press conference, shortly before the classified session.

Trump’s speech came as he weighs whether to carry out new military action on Iran. He last week warned Iran that ‘bad things will happen’ soon if a deal is not reached over its nuclear program.

Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi has said that a deal with the United States to avert conflict is ‘within reach’, in advance of talks between the two countries in Geneva, Switzerland.

Araghchi said that the ‘historic opportunity to strike an unprecedented agreement’ would depend on whether ‘diplomacy is given priority’, in a possible reference to US President Donald Trump’s ongoing threats to use military force against Iran.

In a statement shared on social media on Tuesday, Iran’s top diplomat added that his country remained ‘crystal clear’ that it would ‘under no circumstances ever develop a nuclear weapon’, while also recognising the right of Iran’s people to the benefits of ‘peaceful nuclear technology’.

Indirect talks scheduled for Thursday in Geneva will be the third round of discussions between Washington and Tehran, mediated by Oman, which has said it hopes to see ‘a positive push to go the extra mile towards finalising the deal’.

On February 25, President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, and their daughter Arzu Aliyeva reviewed the developments in the village of Khojavend in the Khojavend district, AzerNEWS reports. Emin Huseynov, Special Representative of the President for the Aghdam, Fuzuli, and Khojavend districts, briefed the head of state and the First Lady on the social infrastructure projects implemented in the village.

This village, part of the eponymous administrative territorial district of Khojavend, was liberated from occupation in September 2023 following the anti-terror operations conducted by Azerbaijan Armed Forces.

The village consists of 278 private houses. Of these, 128 were deemed unfit for habitation, while 150 were partially habitable. Twenty of the partially habitable houses have already been renovated, with an additional 130 houses scheduled for repair this year.

This February, 20 families, comprising 94 individuals, returned to the village. Between March and December, an additional 130 families (533 people) are planned to be resettled.

Extensive infrastructure work has been completed to date. A 5-kilometer gas supply line was installed, and 1,500 meters of the existing network were restored. Furthermore, 2,100 meters of 0.4 kV power lines and two transformer stations were rehabilitated. Internal roads have been paved, and pedestrian paths have been constructed, with work ongoing.

Following the inspection, President Ilham Aliyev, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva and their daughter Arzu Aliyeva familiarized themselves with the living conditions created at home of Rizvan Ibrahimov, who relocated to the village, and held a conversation.

On February 24, Leyla Aliyeva and Alena Aliyeva paid a visit to the Quba district, where they toured local educational institutions and engaged with students and faculty members.

AzerNEWS reports that the visit included stops at a general-purpose boarding school in the city of Quba and the Quba STEAM Center.

The program began with a visit to the city’s general boarding-type secondary school. School officials reported that the institution currently provides education to 114 students, including 79 boys and 35 girls. During their visit, Leyla Aliyeva and Alena Aliyeva familiarized themselves with the conditions created at the school, toured classrooms, and observed ongoing lessons and extracurricular activities.

The guests held warm and sincere conversations with the children, showing interest in their academic progress and daily routines. They presented the students with school supplies and posed for commemorative photographs. A cultural program prepared by the pupils was also showcased during the visit, featuring poetry recitations and musical performances.

The delegation then proceeded to the Quba STEAM Center. During the tour, it was recalled that the large-scale implementation of the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, Mathematics) educational project in Azerbaijani schools began in 2019 at the initiative of First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva.

The Quba STEAM Center has been operating since 2021 and is designed to serve students of various age groups. Leyla Aliyeva and Alena Aliyeva were introduced to the facilities and innovative learning environment established at the center. They engaged in discussions with students, inquiring about how they apply the knowledge and practical skills acquired through the STEAM program.

The visit concluded with commemorative photographs taken together with the children and the school staff, marking a day focused on educational development and youth engagement in the region.