Lior Azizov – a soldier of Azerbaijani origin was killed in a fight with Hamas militants

A 20-year-old sergeant Lior Azizov, a soldier of Azerbaijani origin, died on October 7 in battles against Hamas. According to his mother, Natalie, all his life Lior was inspired by the heroic story of his grandfather, Vahid Azizov, who died heroically during the First Karabakh War in 1992 and was buried in the Alley of Martyrs.

“Lior has always been interested in his identity, wondering who he really was. And I’d always tell him, your grandfather is Muslim, your grandmother is Jewish, your mom is Christian, you have the whole world contained in you and you have to be proud of it.” recalls his mother.

He served in Golan and trained a lot to perfect the strength of his body and spirit to be ready to protect his family, and his people, and to be a warrior of light.

“Our army is not killing anyone, they are just protecting us so that we can safely raise our kids here,” adds Natalie. 

Lior often asked about his grandfather and his father, who served in the Israeli military as well. According to his mother, his grandfather, Vahid Azizov,  played an important role in shaping Lior’s worldview.

“We know that his grandfather is a hero and that there is a school named after him, where there is a small museum, ensuring people remember their heroes.”

There aren’t many details yet, but from what the family could gather from his surviving friends, his commander and almost all his close friends also lost their lives on that day. The survivors said that Lior was brave until the very end: he was wounded in his right arm but still continued to fight, and help the wounded. Despite still being in critical condition, people who have survived thanks to Lior, send his family messages thanking him for saving their lives.

“We don’t know what awaits us in this state of war, but we know our nation is strong, just like the Azerbaijani nation, and we thank you for all your support, and for understanding us just like we understand you. We are together, the powers of good shall win. I believe in it sincerely, and our sons, fathers, grandfathers, and great-grandfathers – they didn’t die in vain, they sacrificed their lives so that we could live a happy life,” says Lior’s mother. 

On Saturday, the first day of the war, she had a short phone call with him. He said: “There’s a shootout here, but I’m fine, don’t worry Mom, I’ll call you back, I promise. Love you”.

That was their last conversation.