Photos: Artsakh State University Targeted by Azerbaijani Cultural Genocide

In the occupied Artsakh region, the Azerbaijani state apparatus continues to eradicate the Armenian traces. This was noted in a post on the Facebook page of the Ombudsman of Culture of Hayk.

“With this policy, Azerbaijan has become a typical symbol of vandalism, surpassing all barbaric tribes that have existed throughout human history. Recently, the Artsakh State University has come under the latest target of Azerbaijan's cultural genocide. Azerbaijani media reports (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE2TOPnXZeM) specify that the external appearance of the university building will be changed. It is evident that, true to its nature, Azerbaijan plans to erase Armenian traces under the guise of construction works. The memorial complex dedicated to students who sacrificed their lives for the homeland is particularly at risk.

The Artsakh State University was founded in 1969 in the city of Stepanakert, the center of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Region. During the war unleashed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh, in October 1992, the government of the Republic of Armenia decided to merge the Stepanakert branch of the Vanadzor Pedagogical Institute with the Yerevan Engineering University’s Stepanakert branch, naming the newly established university Artsakh State University (ASU). The university has actively participated in the defense of the homeland.

It should be noted that the Artsakh State University has also been targeted by Azerbaijani terrorist groups in the 1990s. On August 22, 1992, Azerbaijani occupying forces dropped a 500 kg bomb on the university, with the next attack occurring in 1993. All of this clearly demonstrates that Artsakh's cultural heritage is under threat of destruction and appropriation.

According to Article 4 of the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, any acts of vandalism, theft, plunder, appropriation, hostility, and retribution against cultural heritage are prohibited. The first protocol of the 1954 Hague Convention prohibits the destruction of cultural or spiritual values in occupied territories,” the statement reads.