The video made by the British BBC channel clearly documents the destruction of the Armenian Saint Zoravor Astvatsatsin church in Mekhakavan by Azerbaijan.
This is one of the striking examples of vandalism against the Armenian cultural heritage which we have always talked about, especially since the days of the Azerbaijani-Turkish aggression against Artsakh in the fall of 2020.
The destruction of the Saint Zoravor Astvatsatsin church, the St. Holy Savior Ghazanchetsots Cathedral and Saint Hovhannes Mkrtich church in Shushi, Saint Astvatsatsin church of Tsakuri village in Hadrut Region and the vandalism against the Armenian cultural monuments in the areas under the Azerbaijani control puts under a real and undisputable danger to the existence of centuries-old Armenian culture in those areas.
The 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, emphasizes that damage to cultural property belonging to any people whatsoever means damage to the cultural heritage of all mankind. Therefore, in such conditions, the inappropriate response of the international community to the crimes taking place is incomprehensible.
Convinced that the protection of the cultural property cannot be left out of the legal agenda of civilized society, the Ombudsman once again calls on the international community to take urgent steps for the protection of the Armenian cultural heritage in the territories under the Azerbaijani control.
Artsakh Ombudsman
