Azerbaijan committing cultural genocide in Artsakh, ombudsman warns

Artsakh's Cultural Ombudsman Hovik Avanesov has accused Azerbaijan of carrying out one of the biggest cultural genocides of modern times in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) following its depopulation in September 2023. According to Avanesov, Baku has adopted a deliberate strategy to erase traces of Armenian historical presence in Artsakh.

“The developments of September 19, 2023 marked yet another large-scale assault by the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem on fully-blockaded Artsakh. The Azerbaijani military targeted civilians and public infrastructure, violating international law and committing war crimes. As a result, Artsakh was temporarily occupied and its Armenian population forcibly displaced from their ancestral homeland,” Avanesov said in a statement on the second anniversary of the attack on September 19.

Since September 27, 2020, Azerbaijan has systematically destroyed Artsakh’s cultural heritage, including churches, khachkars, cemeteries, entire settlements and cultural centers. The sites are part of both Armenian and global civilization and their destruction constitutes a glaring example of cultural genocide.

Avanesov criticized the international community for its inadequate response, arguing that formal statements and reluctance to call the actions by their proper names – genocide and cultural genocide – embolden Baku’s policies and set a dangerous precedent for future crimes.