Beautiful architecture of Azerbaijan's Shusha was destroyed during Armenian occupation - expert

By Trend

Most of the beautiful architecture built by Azerbaijanis in Azerbaijan’s Shusha city since the mid-18th century was destroyed during the occupation of these lands, the Chairman of the Malta National Commission for UNESCO, a renowned world heritage expert Ray Bondin said in an article for the Times of Malta newspaper, Trend reports.

Noting that Shusha is the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, Bondin also pointed out that the country’s Karabakh region is enormous, bigger than Luxembourg and for over 30 years, it was occupied by Armenia.

He added that as a result of the occupation, most buildings in the city were destroyed, however, Azerbaijan is determined to rebuild its city.

The city is renowned for the best Azerbaijani musicians, actors, poets and painters. It was also recognized as the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, in spite of its distance from Baku and the difficult mountainous terrain. Shusha is located at 1,600 meters above sea level, the article’s author further said.

Bondin stressed that after liberation of Shusha from the occupation in 2020, it was found out that the once large city of over 20,000 inhabitants did not have one fully standing building.

He noted that in two years since the liberation, new roads, several hotels and other facilities have been built there, and work is underway to restore the remaining landmarks. The castle walls and the main administrative building of the central square were restored.

Bondin also emphasizes that, unlike the Armenians who destroyed mosques, Azerbaijan is working to restore both mosques and churches.

According to the article, the restoration of the destroyed heritage and residential buildings will take enough time, but Azerbaijan is determined to revive the city.