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Armenia has accused Azerbaijan of embarking on a campaign between 1998 and December 2005 to completely demolish the cemetery of finely carved allegedly Armenian khachkars in Julfa. Azerbaijan denies these charges. According to the Azerbaijani Ambassador to the US Khafiz Pashayev, the videos and photographs that have surfaced show some unknown people destroying some mid-size stones and is not clear of what ethnicity those people are. Instead, the ambassador asserts that the Armenian side started a propaganda campaign against Azerbaijan to divert attention from the destruction of Azerbaijani monuments in Armenia.

According to the European Parliament resolution regarding cultural monuments in the South Caucasus, the European Parliament "condemns strongly the destruction of the Julfa cemetery as well as the destruction of all sites of historical importance that has taken place on Armenian or Azerbaijani territory, and condemns any such action that seeks to destroy cultural heritage."

The destruction of Armenian historical monuments on the territory of Azerbaijan has been raised in a new report by an international monitoring body . Armenian sources claimed the discovery in January and February last year of a resumption of destruction of khachkars, adding that the actions “cannot have been carried through without the consent of the Azerbaijan government”.

History

Nakhichevan is an exclave which belongs to Azerbaijan but Armenia’s territory separates them apart. Nakhichevan borders, however, on Armenia, Turkey, and Iran. It was from this area that the Persian King Shah Abbas, during the Persian-Ottoman war, forcibly relocated about 150,000 Armenians year 1620 and resettled them in the outskirts of his capital, Isfahan.

Several Armenian organisations and authorities, among other the Foreign Ministry, have handed in official protests to UNESCO and other international organisation, but also to the US embassy in Azerbaijan.

“Armenia gives a special significance to the deliberate destruction of the Armenian cultural heritage by the Azeri authorities, since those displays of vandalism not only destroy cultural monuments, but also do not contribute to the establishing of mutual confidence between the two nations. Azerbaijan’s actions in Nakhichevan in 2006 were at the center of attention of the RA MFA. In this regard a number of measures were taken in several directions at once. The Armenian MFA informed the international community on the vandalism, which was condemned by CoE and UNESCO. Currently the Azeri side refuses to grant mandates to any international mission for visiting Nakhichevan to estimate the situation on khachkars,” says the report.

The Azerbaijani side has denied any wrongdoing at the highest level, and countered with accusations of Azerbaijani cemeteries and mosques being destroyed by Armenians on the occupied territories of Azerbaijan such as in Karabakh region, Karki exclave, and in Armenia proper.

Destruction of khachkars in Armenia

Additionally, there is a growing evidence and photos from Armenian sources of khachkars and other cultural heritage being destroyed by Armenians themselves, especially around their capital of Yerevan:

"Endangered Khachkars in Armenia and Artsakh It is particularly tragic that khachkars are also endangered in Armenia and Artsakh. They are disappearing, being damaged or moved. Most endangered are the old khachkar fields located near today’s graveyards, where khachkars are being eradicated for the creation of new burial space. The “crown of thorns” belongs to the khachkar field in Arinch near Yerevan. The situation is threatening in Noratus as well, where new burials are encroaching upon the khachkar field from at least three sides. The old graveyard of Areni is in almost the same situation. The movement of khachkars voluntarily by different individuals is a widespread practice. In some cases this is done to allegedly create a new holy place, for example, the case of Karmir Dalakner of Gegharquniq region where the khachkar was brought from Karvachar. Another case of moved khachkars is due to the decoration of new offices and especially entertainment establishments, as for example in the Vank village in Karabakh. The third and the most condemning practice is when khachkars are merely disappearing to decorate individual yards and houses. Khachkars are being damaged also by believers, worshipers and casual visitors, who light candles on them or write their names on them or engage in rituals that are damaging the carvings." See gallery of photos here -

Moreover, the destruction of cultural heritage in Armenia, like elsewhere, has reached dangerous proportions and led to many protests both in press and in streets. ,

Azerbaijan claims that Armenians never existed in those territories and others did recently cleansing the area of Armenians during the Nagorno-Karabakh War.

References

1. Regnum News Agency Report
2. European Parliament On Destruction of Cultural Heritage
3. Azerbaijan: Famous Medieval Cemetery Vanishes
4. History at Risk: Khachkars of Julfa suffer renewed destruction
5. Armenian Caucus Co-Chairs Voice Serious Concerns
6. Baku’s Vandalism in Nakhichevan in 2006 at the Center of Attention of RA MFA
7. HETQ Magazine (Armenia), "We Need to Defend Ourselves from Ourselves", April 10, 2006
8. The new tears of Araxes - Documentary

See also

• Khachkar

External links

• The new tears of Araxes
• Part 1 of the destruction caught on video tape
• Arran Erases Famous Armenian Medieval Cemetery
• http://www.archaeology.org/online/features/djulfa/index.html

• History of Armenia