Salatyn Aziz qizi Asgarova (also spelled Salatyn Askerova; ; 16 December 1961 – 9 January 1991) was a

National Hero of Azerbaijan The National Hero of Azerbaijan () is the highest national title in the Republic of Azerbaijan. The title was named on 25 March 1992, and the "Qizil Ulduz" Medal awarded as a sign of receiving this title was established by a separate law on 15 J ...

. Azerbaijani

journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...

killed in the

First Nagorno-Karabakh War The First Nagorno-Karabakh War was an ethnic conflict, ethnic and territorial conflict that took place from February 1988 to May 1994, in the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in southwestern Azerbaijan, between the majority ethnic Armenians of Nag ...

Life

Salatyn Aziz qizi Asgarova was born on 16 December 1961 in Baku, Azerbaijan. After completing secondary school, she entered

Azerbaijan Oil and Chemistry Institute Azerbaijan State Oil and Industrial University (formerly Azerbaijan State Oil Academy) () is a tertiary education institution in Baku, Azerbaijan. History The rise of what became ASOIU is tied to the rise of the petroleum industry in the Ba ...

. Nevertheless, her enormous interest in literature brought her into journalism. She started her journalistic career at "Baku" newspaper, and then began working as a special correspondent for ''Molodezh Azerbaijana'' (''The Youth of Azerbaijan''). Before the beginning of the

, Salatyn was writing about contemporary issues of society. However, after the war broke out, Salatyn frequently visited the front line and provided press coverage from hot spots. Her family and colleagues tried to persuade her not to go to the front line jeopardizing her life. In such cases, she would usually say: "If nobody goes, then who will?”КРОВАВЫЙ ОМУТ КАРАБАХА (Bloody Slough of Karabakh)
by Yuri Pompeyev

First Nagorno-Karabakh War

On 9 January 1991, the 29-year-old journalist was on her way to

Shusha Shusha (, ) or Shushi () is a city in Azerbaijan, in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Situated at an altitude of 1,400–1,800 metres (4,600–5,900 ft) in the Karabakh mountains, the city was a mountain resort in the Soviet Union, Soviet ...

to prepare a story for the newspaper. At the 6th kilometer of the

Lachin Lachin (, , ; ) is a town in Azerbaijan and the administrative centre of the Lachin District. It was located within the strategic Lachin corridor, which used to link the Nagorno-Karabakh region with Armenia. The town was under control of Armen ...

– Shusha highway, next to the village of Boyuk Galadarasi, the vehicle in which she was traveling was shot upon by Armenian militants firing from at almost point-blank range with machine guns and sniper rifles. The investigators counted 113 bullet holes in the vehicle. As a result of the attack, Salatyn Asgarova died instantly. Three military officers (Lieutenant-Colonel O. Larionov, Major I. Ivanov, and Sergeant I. Goyek) of the

Soviet Army The Soviet Ground Forces () was the land warfare service branch of the Soviet Armed Forces from 1946 to 1992. It was preceded by the Red Army. After the Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, the Ground Forces remained under th ...

accompanying her were killed as well. The attackers – Arno Mkrtchian, Hrachik Petrossian, A. Mongasagian and Garik Arustamian – were identified and arrested. They were later released and handed over to the Armenian authorities.

Legacy

A Baku street and a vessel in the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, described as the List of lakes by area, world's largest lake and usually referred to as a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia: east of the Caucasus, ...

carry her name. A monument in her memory was erected at Tafakkur University in Baku. She has conferred the National Hero title posthumously. Salatyn Asgarova was buried in the Martyrs' Lane in Baku.Killed Azeri Journalist’s Memory Revered
Bakupages.com

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Asgarova, Salatyn 1961 births 1991 deaths 1991 murders in Asia Journalists from Baku Women war correspondents Journalists killed while covering the Nagorno-Karabakh War National Heroes of Azerbaijan People murdered in Azerbaijan Deaths by firearm in Azerbaijan Azerbaijani murder victims Azerbaijani people of the Nagorno-Karabakh War 20th-century Azerbaijani women writers 20th-century Azerbaijani writers Female murder victims 20th-century journalists