A satellite image showing the destruction of the Shushi cemetery

YEREVAN (Panorama/PanArmenian.net) — Satellite imagery has shown the destruction of two Armenian heritage sites in Shushi, the Ghazanchetsots cemetery and the St. John the Baptist Church.

Images from April 4 show that the destruction of the Ghazanchetsots cemetery in Shushi, in Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), is complete, the Caucasus Heritage Watch (CHW) reported.

“This marks the first destruction of a cemetery since the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Azerbaijan to prevent and punish attacks on Armenian cultural heritage,” CHW posted on the platform formerly known as Twitter on Friday, April 20.

Damage to the cemetery began in October 2023, as CHW reported in an alert on November 27.

 

St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham) destroyed
St. John the Baptist Church in 2018

“We told the story of the historic site and the threat it faced. At that point, it was not too late to stop the destruction. But by December 2023 it was almost gone,” the watchdog said.

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In addition, Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham), constructed in 1818, the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD) reveals in a statement.

“Satellite images confirm that the church was razed to the ground in February 2024,” EAFJD said, also sharing satellite imagery.

“This deliberate act by Azerbaijan signifies a systematic erasure of Armenian heritage from their ancestral lands.”

 

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