AzerNews.

Azerbaijani and Turkish diaspora organizations have started a letter campaign to urge U.S. congressmen to commemorate the Black January Tragedy, which marks the 24th anniversary of the soviet army’s bloody invasion of Baku, AzerTag state news agency reported.

The campaign was initiated by the Azerbaijan Society of America, Assembly of Turkish American Associations, Federation of Turkish American Associations and other diaspora organizations.

Late at night on January 20, 1990, some 26,000 Soviet special forces called “Alfa” entered Baku without declaring a state of emergency and committed atrocities against the innocent Azerbaijani people. The invasion was launched at midnight and was committed with brutality; even children, women and the elderly were not spared.

In total, some 133 people were killed, 611 wounded, 841 illegally arrested and five went missing as a result of the intrusion of troops into Baku and other regions of the republic.