The country of Azerbaijan wants to be the center of Islamic architectural heritage. Does that justify knocking down heritage sites that are churches?
The symposium titled “Islamic Architectural Heritage of Shusha City,” organized by the Shusha City State Reserve Department and supported by ICESCO (Islamic World Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization), has concluded in Shusha, Azerbaijan.
Held over two days as part of the events marking Shusha’s designation as the “Cultural Capital of the Islamic World” for 2024, the event attracted over 80 architects from Türkiye, Egypt, the UAE, Tunisia, Kenya, Jordan, Italy, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Azerbaijan.
Aydin Karimov, Special Representative of the Azerbaijani President in Shusha district, Ilgar Isbatov, Deputy-Chairman of Azerbaijan’s State Committee of Urban Planning and Architecture, Pietro Laureano, a representative of UNESCO, and Bilal Çelebi, a representative of ICESCO, highlighted Shusha’s unique architectural significance.
They described the event as highly important in terms of the history and significance of Islamic architecture, adding that the symposium significantly contributed to the development of architecture.
The event featured panel discussions on topics such as “Urban regeneration of historical fabrics,” “Modern life of monuments,” and “Sustainable architecture: material, design, and implementation.”
Is Islamic heritage incompatible with Armenian Christian churches?
There was no mention of the past and ongoing Armenian genocide happening at warp speed in Azerbaijan or the complete eradication of Christian culture in Shusha City. Churches that were not destroyed are being dismantled. A sustainable city is one that welcomes all kinds of religions and its architecture, past and present. That’s what the West believes as it welcomes immigrants from all over the world who are free to practice their faith and build their homes of worship.
Are we seeing a double standard in Azerbaijan? Rulers of the free world are meeting there in November to discuss climate issues during COP29 and the country is criticized for suppressing climate activists and journalists by putting them in jail. It is a great opportunity for real journalists to investigate.
The Caucasus Heritage Watch has reported that Azerbaijan has destroyed a 177-year-old church in the city of Shusha (Shushi), in Nagorno-Karabakh in the last year. The open-source cultural sites watchdog, reported that the St Hovhannes Mkrtich church is gone. They analyzed satellite imagery appearing to show that the church was completely destroyed between 28 December 2023 and 4 April 2024.
If you are in Baku and can make it to Shusha this week give them an ask.
#Armenia #Azerbaijan #cultural heritage #Nagorno-Karabakh
