Azerbaijan’s deliberate destruction of Armenian cultural heritage: Le Figaro reports

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YEREVAN, July 19. /ARKA/. Azerbaijan is intentionally destroying Armenian cultural and historical heritage, leading French newspaper Le Figaro wrote on Thursday, citing a report by the European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ)./pp

The report details alarming disappearances and demolitions of Armenian cultural monuments in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which came under Azerbaijani control in September 2023. Based on satellite imagery, the report meticulously documents these destructions./pp

Researchers warn that the millennia-old heritage of Nagorno-Karabakh is in peril. The international Christian NGO describes the situation as cultural destruction executed by Baku. The report accuses Azerbaijani forces of demolishing churches, removing crosses, and destroying cemeteries./pp “This brazen and destructive policy aims to erase the heritage of Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh,” the Strasbourg-based organization warns ./pp

Le Figaro notes that the Nagorno-Karabakh region, historically populated by Armenians since antiquity, hosts approximately 500 cultural sites containing around 6,000 Armenian heritage monuments. Since the full transfer of the region to Azerbaijani control, Baku has consistently denied foreign observers access to these cultural sites despite numerous requests from Armenia and international bodies./pp

Through satellite imagery collected by researchers and various organizations, the ECLJ has been able to compile a detailed list of destroyed churches, missing statues, and vandalized cemeteries./pp

Le Figaro emphasizes the severe implications of these actions on the preservation of Armenian heritage and calls for increased international scrutiny and intervention./pp br/p