Guba, April-May 1918. Documented Pogroms of the Muslims
162
any situation, used these events as an excuse to attack the Armenian
residents of Guba and rob them. Smart and prudent Muslims, con-
cerned about the Armenians’ lives found no other way of protecting
them than isolating them in properly guarded prison premises. The
Armenians numbered up to 200, women and children among them. It
was this group of Armenians Ghelovani set free as he believed there
was no danger from the Muslims.
Several days later, the Lezghins from adjacent villages decided
to kick the Bolsheviks out of Guba. They encircled the town and star-
ted stated exchanging fire with the Bolsheviks. The Bolsheviks were
forced to withdraw. While leaving the town, they evacuated all Chris-
tians from the town, the Armenians being the majority among them.
Some of these people were killed in an ongoing exchange of fire.
Some ten days after these events, on May 1, ‘the punitive squad’
manned exclusively by Armenians arrived in town, armed with can-
nons and machine guns and led by notorious Amazasp. They came to
avenge the residents of Guba for the Armenians killed by the Lezghins.
The squad entered the town during the daytime. Immediately
upon their arrival the Armenians started mercilessly massacring Mus-
lim men, women ad children.
Having slain everyone they got hold of in the streets and
squares they started breaking into the houses and massacring the
whole families, even infants were not spared. Besides this, the Arme-
nians were robbing the Muslims, taking possession over their gold,
jewellery, cash and other valuables. Moreover, they started setting fire
on households and shops. Dead bodies were found here and there,
decomposing indoors and outdoors. The Armenians were unbridled
in their atrocities for several days.
On the forth day Amazasp addressed the people gathering in
the square in front of the mosque. All I recall from his speech is that he
avenged the Guba residents for the Armenians killed by the Lezghins.
Neither Amazasp, nor his aides said anything about the Muslims they
spared in response to a number of Armenian women that I rescued
because I rescued no Armenian women. What I know for sure is that
the Armenians raped above a hundred Muslim women and girls. Their
names are unknown to me as parents and kin hide this following the
local custom and prevailing rules.
In Amazasp’s squad I came across an Armenian resident of Guba,