Azerbaijani military accused of devastating Armenian cemeteries

Presumably, this took place in the territories of Karabakh, which fell under the control of Azerbaijan under the trilateral armistice agreement reached on November 9.

The armed conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh lasted from September 27 to November 10. Russia, Armenia and Azerbaijan took part in the signing of the armistice agreement. According to the agreements reached, Azerbaijan regained control over part of the territory of the former Soviet Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Okrug and over all the neighboring Azerbaijani regions previously lost in the 1990s, in particular, the historical capital of Karabakh, the city of Shusha, known for monuments of ancient architecture and having an important strategic importance. It is located on the road leading from Armenia to the current capital of Nagorno-Karabakh, Stepanakert, not far from this city and at a higher altitude. Russia sent a peacekeeping contingent to the region.

In the footage of the video, presumably from the territories transferred to Azerbaijan, presumably the Azerbaijani military, laughing, smash the gravestones on the Armenian graves and trample flowers. Fuad Akhundov, head of the foreign media sector of the Azerbaijani presidential administration, said in an interview with the Dozhd TV channel that during the entire period of hostilities there were many "beautifully staged fakes" and at first glance it is difficult to determine whether such a fact took place. But if this is not a fake, then the military prosecutor's office will punish those responsible. He added that the Armenians, leaving the liberated territories, burned houses so that the Azerbaijanis did not get any infrastructure. He also accused Soviet Armenia of destroying the Islamic architectural monuments of Yerevan.

Videos and photos were indeed published on social networks, in which Armenian residents of Lachin, Kelbajar, Aghdam districts set fire to their own houses, shops and other buildings before leaving the territory. Sometimes even the deceased were dug up and taken to Armenia from their graves.

At the same time, on November 15, the Armenian Apostolic Church announced the desecration of the Cathedral of Holy Christ the All-Savior in Shusha by the Azerbaijani military. The photos and videos that have appeared on social networks show that inscriptions in Azerbaijani appeared on the walls of the ancient cathedral. A number of prominent figures of Russian culture expressed concern that the architectural and other cultural monuments of Nagorno-Karabakh may now face the "fate of the Syrian Palmyra" even after the end of the war.