Azerbaijan damages St. Nerses Church in Martuni

St. Nerses the Great Church in the city of Martuni, located in the now-occupied territory of Artsakh, has sustained damage from Azerbaijani actions over the past two years, according to Monument Watch.

Photos reportedly shared by several Azerbaijani Telegram channels show the church with broken windows and visible traces of gunfire across its exterior.

The church and its surroundings were targeted during the 44-day war in 2020, when Martuni was subjected to intense shelling by Azerbaijani forces. Explosions were recorded near the church, with structural damage still visible on the southern façade, further supporting claims of direct targeting.

St. Nerses the Great Church was built in 2004 through the donation of philanthropist Alice Ohanian.

The 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, Article 4, states that all parties must respect cultural property, both their own and that of others, by refraining from hostile acts or reprisals.

International humanitarian law also explicitly prohibits attacks on cultural heritage during armed conflicts. Its customary norms are binding on all parties.

Azerbaijan launched a large-scale attack on Artsakh on September 19, 2023, bombarding the entire region. A day later, on September 20, Artsakh’s authorities accepted a Russian-mediated ceasefire and agreed to Azerbaijan’s terms, which included disarmament and the dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh. On September 24, the forced displacement of over 100,000 Armenians began. According to some reports, only about 20 Armenians remain in Artsakh. On September 28, President Samvel Shahramanyan signed a decree to dissolve the republic effective January 1, 2024. Later, on October 19, he issued another decree invalidating a claim made by the information headquarters about the dissolution.