National Hero commemorated in Baku

A ceremony commemorating the National Hero of Azerbaijan Chingiz Gurbanov was held in the Heydar mosque in Baku on March 9.

Aceremony commemorating the National Hero of Azerbaijan Chingiz Gurbanov was held in the Heydar mosque in Baku on March 9.

On behalf of the head of state, Azerbaijan’s State Commission on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing Persons held the ceremony at the instruction of the President of Azerbaijan, Supreme Commanderin-Chief of the Armed Forces Ilham Aliyev as a tribute to the memory of the National Hero.

The ceremony was attended by the head of the State Security Service Madat Guliyev, chief of the State Border Service Elchin Guliyev, Chairman of the Caucasus Muslims Office Allahshukur Pashazade, head of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations Mubariz Gurbanli, members of the Milli Mejlis (Parliament), employees and officers of the Defence Ministry, Ministry of Emergency Situations and other government agencies, as well as members of the public and relatives of the National Hero.

Soldier of the Azerbaijani army Chingiz Gurbanov fell martyr on December 29, 2016. On that day, a reconnaissance group of the Armenian Armed Forces attempted to violate the Azerbaijan-Armenia state border. The Armenian group found itself in the ambush of the Azerbaijani army while violating the borders and suffered heavy losses. During the fighting, Gurbanov went missing. Later, it was clarified that he was killed by the Armenian Armed Forces and his body remained on the territory controlled by the Armenian Armed Forces.

After the incident, the Azerbaijani side officially appealed to the Azerbaijani representation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), OSCE Minsk Group, as well as the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk in order to return the body. Despite this, the Armenian side for over a month refused to return the body.

Eventually, Gurbanov’s body was transferred to Azerbaijan on February 5 as a result of the regular measures undertaken by international organizations and relevant state agencies in accordance with the instructions of the President of Azerbaijan. After a farewell ceremony in Baku, Chingiz Gurbanov was buried in the Alley of Martyrs in Gusar.

On February 7, President Ilham Aliyev signed an order conferring the title of National Hero of Azerbaijan upon Chingiz Gurbanov posthumously for his special services in protection of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and bravery shown while performing a combat mission.