Zeeshan Mumtaz
ISLAMABAD: The Armenia-Azerbaijan war traces its roots to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which started with the Armenian attack and its occupation of Azerbaijan’s Nagorno-Karabakh region after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Armenia attacked Azerbaijan in 1991 and occupied the whole Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in 1993. After its occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenia started ethnic cleansing of the Azerbaijanis in the entire Nagorno-Karabakh area.
Armenia also relocated ethnic Armenians to settle in the Nagorno-Karabakh region to change the Azerbaijani region’s demographic structure of Karabakh.
Azerbaijan: Geography of Nagorno-Karabakh Region
The Nagorno-Karabakh region is a disputed territory – internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan – located in the South Caucasus.
South Caucasus is the mountainous natural border between Asia and Europe, covering countries of Bulgaria, Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Russia.
Armenia kept its illegal occupation of the Nagorno-Karabakh region for almost 30 years. During this time it undertook devastation, human rights violations, ethnic cleansing, cultural vandalism, and heritage destruction in the Nagorno-Karabakh region.
Azerbaijan War with Armenia; Karabakh Region
Nagorno-Karabakh was liberated from Armenian occupation by Azerbaijan in the second Armenian-Azerbaijan, which started on September 2020 and ended on the Russian-brokered peace pact, making Azerbaijan victorious.
The Nagorno-Karabakh region, once rich in culture, heritage, history, and civilization, is in the hands of Azerbaijan in the shape of destruction, devastation, and vandalism.
Armenia has bulldozed everything on the ground of Nagorno-Karabakh. The cities of Shusha, Aghdam, Lachin, Fuzali, and Kalbajar were prominent cultural, heritage, and beautiful cities of Nagorno-Karabakh full of life and colors, brutally destroyed by Armenia during its occupation.
Azerbaijan: Region of Hiroshima of the Caucuses – Aghdam city
Azerbaijan’s Aghdam city, known as the gateway to Nagorno-Karabakh, was brutally destroyed and razed to the ground so much by Armenia that the Western press has termed the city of Aghdam as the “Hiroshima of the Caucuses.”
Armenia utilized the strategic Aghdam city as its military buffer zone during its occupation in the Nagorno-Karabakh region since 1993. After wiping out the Azerbaijanis, Armenia has vandalized each and every aspect of Azeri identity – from its history, culture, and heritage to their dead bodies in the graveyard of Aghdam city.
Armenia completely laid landmines throughout Aghdam city along with placing explosives and human and anti-tank mines before handing over Aghdam city to Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan will have to spend many years and millions in funds to clear Aghdam city from the mines, and explosives the Armenians left behind intentionally.
Azerbaijan: Cultural Vandalism in Aghdam
Armenians ruined the city center of Aghdam and demolished the civilian infrastructure, thousands of homes, businesses, and historical and religious sites, along with Azerbaijani heritage and cultural landmarks and monuments.
The Armenians have looted everything in Aghdam city; they have displaced the dead bodies from the graves and destroyed every building and religious tomb and Shahbulag castle in the Aghdam city.
According to local authorities, the city was established in the 18th century and was given the name Aghdam by the Karabakh monarch Panah Ali Khan, whose fortress and tomb were situated there. Aghdam means “White Roof” in Armenian.
In Aghdam city, Armenia has destroyed everything except the historical, traditional and cultural main mosque of Aghdam known as ‘The Juma Mosque.’
The tombs of Khan and his family members, which were situated inside the fortress grounds, were also destroyed, along with Panah Ali Khan’s mansion, by Armenian forces.
The Aghdam State Drama Theater, built in 1955, has also been destroyed. There were 2,800 exhibits in this museum, but everything was destroyed by the Armenian troops, and today one can see just rubble there. The destruction of religious, historical, and cultural sites in Karabakh demonstrated Armenia’s contempt towards Azerbaijanis.
Azerbaijani President’s special Aghdam district representative Umid S. Isazada told Anadolu Agency, “The entire city has been demolished. The Armenian occupying forces even destroyed historical and religious sites.”
The Aghdam Great Mosque was inaugurated as a place of worship in 1870, and the Aghdam Ethnographic Museum, the Aghdam Bread Museum, and historical items were all destroyed.
The extent of the damage done to Azerbaijan’s natural resources, the destruction of residential buildings, and the destruction of historical, religious, and cultural monuments exposed Armenia’s vandalism.
Azerbaijan: Revival of Aghdam of Karabakh Region
Aghdam, commonly referred to as the “Hiroshima of the Caucasus” due to its destruction at the hands of Armenia, is undergoing a revival, reconstruction, rebuilding, and resettlement which is estimated to be complete by 2025. Tough rebuilding of Agdam is ahead of Azerbaijani government as Armenians have impacted damage up to $14 billion.
Azerbaijan: Foreign Experts on Vandalism of Aghdam
Azerbaijani government has invited international working groups of experts, researchers, and scientists in Aghdam specifically and Nagorno-Karabakh generally, which have termed the Armenian destruction of Aghdam as the cultural vandalism and human rights violations. The experts have urged the UNESCO to take notice of Armenian cultural vandalism.
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev said that “I think it’s worse than Hiroshima as Hiroshima was a nuclear tragedy, an atomic attack, barbarians and vandals did not pass there, though. We believe that following the occupation, the city of Aghdam was completely devastated. It was purposefully and methodically demolished, just as the city of Fuzuli.”
Robert Cekuta, a former US ambassador to Azerbaijan, called the scope of the destruction in Aghdam horrifying. Cekuta told reporters in Aghdam, that “These ruins bear witness to brutality on humanity. It’s a wonderful thing that the occupation has ended in these areas. However, it will take a while for these areas to be restored.”
