141
ted to me exceeds 80 thousand rubles. I have nothing to add to this.
Read aloud to and signed by Meshadi Hamdulla Aliyev (in Ara-
bic characters)
Translated by E.Khanbudaghov (certified by a signature)
Signed by A.Novatski, the member of the Commission
Reference: SARA, f.1061, op.1, d.96, ll. 41-43
File No. 59
Record of Examination
On this 16th day of December, 1918, in Guba
Novatski, the member of the Ad Hoc Investigation Commission
established by the Government of Azerbaijan, examined the following
person as a witness, pursuant to the Criminal Court Regulations:
Witness: Shukur Turab oghlu, aged 70, a Guba resident, literate.
Arrival of Amazasp’s squad in Guba was quite unexpected for
us indeed. All of a sudden, one morning gunshots were heard and in
a lot of troops flooded into the town. This caused panics. Whoever
could flee did so, but most of the residents remained. The town was
populated exclusively by Muslims as the Armenians and the Russians
left earlier. People tried to lock up inside the houses. This is what I did
too. Massacre and plunder were going on in town. I personally did not
witness the murders and loot, however what I saw was lots of dead
bodies of men, women and children. Some of them were ripped by
daggers. On the third day, the Armenians came to my home. Armed
with guns and daggers, they pushed me out to the street and con-
voyed with a group of other Muslims. We were brought to the house
of Mullah Hajjibaba where there were a lot of people have already
convened.
The chief of Armenians Amazasp with former Armenian resident
of Guba named Krikor (Grigory) started questioning the mullah about
whereabouts of the Armenian priest. Mullah and all of us replied that
he had left the town with the Bolsheviks, however his current where-
abouts were unknown to us. Amazasp started threatening the mullah
with death when a Georgian walked out of a shop and told the Arme-
nians that the Mullah had saved a number of Armenians. The Arme-
nians pounced upon the Georgian ready to kill him, so he was forced
Documents on the Devastation of Guba
Witness Testimonies of Residents of the Town of Guba