Azerbaijan has begun actively resettling Azerbaijani citizens in villages of Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) that were historically inhabited exclusively by Armenians, according to a report by the cultural heritage monitoring group Monument Watch.
The organization, which tracks the condition of Armenian cultural heritage in the region, said the policy is part of Azerbaijan’s government program known as the “great return to the territories liberated from occupation” launched in 2022.
According to the Monument Watch, the initiative envisions the return and settlement of Azerbaijani residents in what Baku describes as “liberated historical territories”. In practice, the group said the policy involves resettling Azerbaijani citizens across Nagorno-Karabakh.
The resettlement process accelerated after 2023, when Azerbaijan seized full control of Artsakh and the Armenian population left the territory following a military offensive.
The Monument Watch said Azerbaijani authorities have prioritized settlements that were historically Armenian-populated and had no Azerbaijani residents in the past, particularly in the territory of the former Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast during the Soviet era.
Between 2024 and 2025, Azerbaijanis have reportedly been resettled in several villages and towns, including in Vank, Haterk, Chapar, Kolatak, Drmbon, Horatagh and Nerkin Horatagh of the Martakert district, the town of Martuni and the villages of Karmir Shuka and Sos in the Martuni district, the town of Hadrut in the Hadrut district, as well as Aygestan, Patara, Astghashen, Khachen, Noragyugh, Khnapat, Khnatsakh and Shosh in the Askeran district.
The policy has also extended to Stepanakert, including the suburb of Krkzhan, according to the report.
The Azerbaijani authorities present the resettled residents as “displaced indigenous inhabitants,” the Monument Watch said. The monitoring group disputes this characterization, arguing that Soviet-era demographic records show that many of the villages now being resettled had no Azerbaijani population.
The group said Azerbaijani media frequently present renovated Armenian houses as newly constructed homes and portray schools, kindergartens and apartment buildings built during the Soviet period or under the Artsakh authorities as new infrastructure.
The Monument Watch also said Azerbaijani officials and media have begun assigning new Azerbaijani place names to settlements and promoting historical narratives that omit Armenian historical and cultural presence.
The group cited the historic region of Khachen, including the village of Vank, as an example where such efforts intensified in 2024.
The Monument Watch warned that the resettlement process could place Armenian cultural and historical sites at risk, including churches, monuments, cemeteries and other heritage sites located within or near the settlements.
According to the group, a monument in Vank dedicated to victims of World War II and the Artsakh liberation war has already been dismantled.
In the village of Khnatsakh, the monitoring group said monuments commemorating World War II and the Karabakh war were removed and replaced with a sign displaying the village’s newly assigned Azerbaijani name, “Xanyurdu kəndi”.
—
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Kajoyan Gevork. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2026/03/12/azerbaijan-resettling-azerbaijanis-in-formerly-armenian-inhabited-villages-of/