National hero of Azerbaijan Mubariz Ibrahimov

This year, the National Hero of Azerbaijan, ensign Mubariz Ibrahimov would have turned 30 years old. He died 8 years ago when he was 22 years old. In the following article Vestnik Kavkaza tries to analyze why a 22-year-old hero was killed and what he was fighting for.

The Soviet Union collapsed in late 1991. The country was destroyed at the initiative of the central authorities but not of the union republics, where the center’s initiative was perceived very cautiously. The peoples of Transcaucasia, Central Asia, the RSFSR, Ukraine, Byelorussia and other republics at one time made a great contribution to the strengthening of the USSR, fought against the fascist Germany shoulder to shoulder, defending the honor of the country, liberating the occupied Soviet territories and heroically continuing the offensive, passing through the whole of Eastern Europe, defeated the enemy in Berlin.

It is worth remembering at least the soldiers of the 416th Infantry Division, which consisted mainly of Azerbaijanis. 1054th and 1374th Regiments were formed in Agdam, the 1373rd Regiment - in Geokchay, the 1368th Regiment - in Sumgait. At the end of April 1945, the 416th Division was one of the first to break into the outskirts of Berlin, stormed Straussberg, crossed the Spree, broke into the enemy's stronghold - the palace of  Kaiser Wilhelm. In early May, the soldiers of the 416th Division seized other strategic points and hoisted the banner of victory over the Brandenburg Gate. Add to this the fact that 90% of the petroleum products used for military purposes were delivered to Baku, and the contribution of the Azerbaijani SSR to the Victory would become obvious.

In 1991, Moscow granted independence to all union republics, but the sovereignty of Azerbaijan was incomplete. This was due to the policy of Mikhail Gorbachev (it is surprising that this person has not yet been convicted for his actions), aimed at fomenting national conflicts, which was one of the main reasons for the collapse of a huge country. The result of this kind of policy was a confrontation that became a war on some territories. The instigators of these conflicts were Gorbachev's assistant cliques, who acted through the criminal rabble having certain skills for this purpose.

The beginning of the armed confrontation in Nagorno-Karabakh was preceded by the events of 1987-1988, which began with the dismissal of Azerbaijanis in the cities of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region, including Stepanakert. All this was a part of a large plan of law enforcement agencies and officials who held high posts in both the party structures and KGB. The second point of this plan was the eviction of Azerbaijanis from Armenia. All this was followed by an open confrontation, blown up under a clear scenario of the KGB and foreign specialists interested in the disintegration of the USSR.

A large-scale war was unleashed due to the assistance of one or the other side of the flared conflict. The help was provided selectively, taking into account the internal layouts of the forces and the forecasts as to who would obey the orders of the center more obediently. It was about accepting conditions corresponding to the semi-colonial status of the republics. The result of this policy was the occupation of more than 20% of Azerbaijan’s territory and displacement of more than a million people from their ancestral lands.

Can people who fought for their common homeland and defended it in 1945, accept the loss of land where they were born, grew up, where their fathers and grandfathers are buried? Can they come to terms with the barbed wire that separates them from their native land? Are there many Azerbaijanis for whom material well-being does not mean anything in comparison with the honor of their families and the nation as a whole? There are a lot of them! One of them was Mubariz Ibrahimov.

As a result of a gunfire initiated by the Armenian armed forces on June 18, 2010, a 22-year-old ensign of the national army, Mubariz Ibrahimov, entered the unequal battle with Armenian servicemen at the cost of his own life, killing four aggressors and wounding four others.

When Mubariz did not return to the military unit, there were suspicions that he had deserted. The commanders found the ensign’s father, who told them: "My son would never have fled the army. If you cannot find him, then look for him at the enemy territory. He went to fight.’’

His father's words were prophetic. Later it turned out that Mubarak's body remained at the territory controlled by the invaders after the end of the battle.

Before entering the battle, the warrant officer left a letter to his parents: "My dear mother and father, do not miss me. My heart is torn in these difficult days for my homeland. I'm going to the enemy. If I become a martyr, do not cry, but rejoice for me, that I could reach such a level. Long live the Motherland! Your son Mubariz. "

Armenia transferred the body of Mubariz Ibrahimov only two months later. His hands were still tied. It seems that the occupiers feared even the dead hero. The strength of people is so great that they are ready to die for their native land, so the invaders to leave Karabakh and other territories of Azerbaijan.

Today Baku is in favor of a peaceful settlement of the conflict, but we should not forget that the Azerbaijani army is equipped with the most advanced weapons, and the Azerbaijani people have sons like Mubariz Ibrahimov who are ready to fight to a finish for the liberation of their homeland. These are great-grandsons of those who beat fascists on the battlefields of the Great Patriotic War, who supplied oil to the front, without which no tank would move, no aircraft would take off, that in the conditions of the vehicles war would mean the defeat of the marooned USSR.

It is worth noting that the national policy of today's Azerbaijani leadership is radically different from the policy of the current leadership of Armenia, which came to power under the nationalist slogans like ‘Armenia for Armenians’. If 150,000 Russians live in Azerbaijan today, there are only 15,000 of them in Armenia. The preservation of Russian kindergartens, secondary schools and Russian sectors in all universities means that not only the current generation knows Russian, but today schoolchildren will also speak Russian because Azerbaijan sees its future together with Russia, where the largest Azerbaijani diaspora lives.

This is the best answer to all those who sow the seeds of doubt and frighten Russia by the fact that the solution of the territorial problem of Azerbaijan will take it away from Russia.

Today, only Armenians live in the occupied lands recognized as the territory of Azerbaijan by the whole world, the infrastructure there is completely destroyed, and the territory is mutilated by the destroyed buildings reminiscent of post-war Minsk and Stalingrad.

Azerbaijan is ready to restore these lands, as it did in the village of Jodzhug Marjanly released in April of 2016.

The peaceful resolution of the Karabakh problem will have to begin with the withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Azerbaijani lands. All citizens of the republic can live peacefully on the liberated and restored lands, including Armenians who lived together with Azerbaijanis in peace and friendship for many years. The Azerbaijani authorities and people are able to guarantee peaceful coexistence of all peoples on this land, regardless of their nationality and religion.