On November 8, 2020, Azerbaijani special forces scaled the sheer mountain cliffs surrounding the historic fortress city of Shusha in Nagorno-Karabakh, liberating the cultural capital after twenty-eight years of occupation during the 44-day Patriotic War. Shusha is revered in Azerbaijani culture as the birthplace of classical mugham music, poetry, and carpet-weaving. On December 3, 2020, President Ilham Aliyev decreed November 8 as Victory Day (Zəfər Günü) across the Republic of Azerbaijan, establishing it as an annual official non-working state holiday celebrated with military parades in Baku, fireworks on the Caspian seaside boulevard, and visits to the Alley of Martyrs.
On November 8, 2020, Azerbaijani special forces scaled the sheer mountain cliffs surrounding the historic fortress city of Shusha in Nagorno-Karabakh, liberating the cultural capital after twenty-eight years of occupation during the 44-day Patriotic War. Shusha is revered in Azerbaijani culture as the birthplace of classical mugham music, poetry, and carpet-weaving. On December 3, 2020, President Ilham Aliyev decreed November 8 as Victory Day (Zəfər Günü) across the Republic of Azerbaijan, establishing it as an annual official non-working state holiday celebrated with military parades in Baku, fireworks on the Caspian seaside boulevard, and visits to the Alley of Martyrs.
