Artsakh Cultural Heritage Ombudsman: We are facing one of the largest  and most dangerous cultural genocides of the 21st century

ArmInfo. We are facing one of the largest and most dangerous cultural genocides of the 21st century, as noted in a statement issued by the Artsakh Cultural Heritage Ombudsman.

The statement points out that during and after the large-scale war of  2020 unleashed by the Turkish- Azerbaijani tandem against the  Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and the complete occupation of Artsakh and  the forced displacement of its entire population, over 800 cases of  vandalism were documented. "The cultural genocide in Artsakh has now  reached an unprecedented scale and is systematic. Moreover, the  examples of its implementation demonstrate the state sanctioned  nature of this policy," the Cultural Heritage Ombudsman noted. 

He believes  that this is one of the largest cultural genocides ever  recorded in history. In this regard, the statement underscores that  the destruction of the cultural heritage of Artsakh is detrimental to   civilization as a whole. In this vein, the Cultural Heritage  Ombudsman noted that if international organizations continue to limit  themselves to protocol and toothless statements, they will in fact  become indirect sponsors of Azerbaijan's criminal policy. 

"Indifference and criminal inaction, as evidenced by the last five  years, not only fail to stop, but also encourage new crimes by the  dictatorial regime of Baku. It is time for the international  community to move beyond empty and formal calls, and take real and  practical steps, including  international sanctions and the immediate  dispatch of independent expert missions to Artsakh, temporarily  occupied by Azerbaijan. Each day that passes sees a rise in losses  and an increase in the burden of responsibility not only for the  criminals, but also for those who remain silent," the NKR Ombudsman  for Cultural Heritage concluded.