Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 7, 1992 TAG: 9203070122
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: MOSCOW LENGTH: Medium
Ayaz Mutalibov, 53, who became Azerbaijan's first freely elected president only six months ago, was brought down by popular discontent over what nationalists considered a too-soft policy on Nagorno-Karabakh, the mountainous enclave that both Armenians and Azerbaijanis claim.
His resignation and temporary replacement by the chairman of the national parliament was considered likely to lead to a more aggressive Azerbaijani line on Nagorno-Karabakh and further escalation of the fighting there.
As Mutalibov resigned Friday evening, reports already were filtering out of Nagorno-Karabakh of a heavy, armor-backed Azerbaijani attack on the Armenian-populated town of Askeran and the nearby village of Nakhichevanik. News agencies reported at least 27 dead.
It was in that very area that scores of refugees from the Azerbaijani-populated town of Khojaly were reportedly gunned down by Armenian militants last week. Azerbaijanis claim that a total of 1,000 Khojaly residents may have died in the Armenian attack on the town, and about 200 bodies have been recovered. Denounced for not having taken measures that might have prevented the Khojaly deaths, Mutalibov fought the mounting demands for his resignation fiercely over the last few days.
But the parliament building in the Azerbaijani capital of Baku was besieged by several thousand demonstrators Friday demanding that he step down. Aides said he had been given a final ultimatum by opposition leaders.
Finally, in an exhausted speech to parliament, Mutalibov gave in. "In all our problems, we are all guilty. I am guilty, too," he said. - Los Angeles Times
by CNB