Another case of vandalism took place in Artsakh occupied by Azerbaijan. This time, as a result of Azerbaijani vandalism, the Cathedral of St. Mary of Stepanakert was destroyed. Until now, Azerbaijan has thoroughly destroyed various churches both in Stepanakert and in the regions.

Artsakh cultural heritage ombudsman Hovik Avanesov recently presented statistics on the cases of vandalism in Artsakh, informing that about 1000 cases of similar vandalism have already been registered by Azerbaijan.

To what extent do the international structures that deal with the preservation of cultural heritage keep these cases in the center of their attention, how is the problem presented in different structures from the Armenian side?

Raffi Kortoshyan, deputy director of the Foundation for the Study of Armenian Architecture according to them, they have not heard any statement from any international organization regarding the vandalized monuments in Artsakh recently.

“Actually, these problems are not even raised. Satellite photos are still not available, there are only old satellite photos that show that the church is still there, but it has been almost proven by various Facebook users that the Stepanakert church has been destroyed. We are waiting for new satellite photos, after which we will definitely talk about everything.

Reactions to all cases of vandalism are limited only on the Internet by different users or professionals, there is no reaction from any international organization.” 168.amRaffi Kortoshyan said in a conversation with

According to our interlocutor, various experts and individuals promptly spread all the data regarding vandalism, present facts, but the response is delayed.

“The International Court of Justice in 2022 has a decision adopted on September 7 that Azerbaijan is obliged to protect Armenian monuments from destruction, they will not be vandalized. However, we are witnessing that Azerbaijan does not fulfill this decision and destroys the monuments every day.

In reality, the laws and commitments, decisions of international courts should become a deterrent mechanism for Azerbaijan, if Azerbaijan does not do all that, then other steps should be taken.

I think the international community, civilization is in a deep sleep. “The international community, which is divided, does not talk about the forced displacement of people, ethnic cleansing and genocides. It is hard for me to imagine that it should talk about, for example, the destroyed churches,” added Raffi Kortoshyan.

According to him, by eliminating the Armenian monuments and the Armenian traces in Artsakh, Azerbaijan has one goal and has always fulfilled its goals, both in Nakhichevan, in Northern Artsakh and in Artsakh itself, and in all those areas, Azerbaijan has destroyed and is destroying all Armenian monuments.

“Azerbaijan even destroyed cemeteries, today is no exception, it is doing the same thing. After subjecting Armenians to ethnic cleansing and displacement, he continues to destroy Armenian monuments. After ethnic cleansing, this is a new ethnic cleansing, already in terms of monuments,” Raffi Kortoshyan emphasized.

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