Azerbaijan Destroys Prominent Armenian Cathedral in Stepanakert, Artsakh

Azerbaijan has destroyed a prominent Armenian cathedral in Stepanakert, with satellite imagery showing the church was demolished between March 3 and April 2, 2026, according to an Armenian cultural heritage specialist monitoring endangered sites across Artsakh.

Hovik Avanesov, the Cultural Heritage Ombudsman of Artsakh and vice president of the Azgayin Cultural-Historical NGO, identified the destroyed building as the Holy Mother of God Cathedral, also known as the Cathedral of the Protection of the Mother of God.

The cathedral was one of Stepanakert’s most recognizable Armenian religious landmarks.

A photograph recently shared on Azerbaijani social media shows the site after the church was demolished. Avanesov said the woman who posted the image had photographed herself at the same location in 2025, when the cathedral was still standing.

The two images provide a clear before-and-after record of the cathedral’s destruction. Avanesov said the caption accompanying the newer photograph was also troubling.

The Azerbaijani phrase “gorbagor oldu” appeared alongside the image. Avanesov said the expression can be understood as meaning that something has disappeared or been destroyed. He argued that the post presented the destruction of the Armenian cathedral as something to celebrate.

Avanesov said the reaction should not be dismissed as an isolated social media post. He described it as part of a broader climate of hostility toward Armenian cultural and religious heritage in Azerbaijan.

“When the destruction of a church is accompanied in the public sphere by expressions of joy and pride, this indicates that the cultivation of Armenophobia and hostility toward Armenian cultural heritage in Azerbaijan has acquired a systemic character,” Avanesov said.

His office and other cultural heritage groups had previously reported the cathedral’s destruction after examining satellite imagery. Researchers have increasingly relied on remote monitoring because independent experts have limited access to Armenian heritage sites in Artsakh, which came under full Azerbaijani control after the forced displacement of the region’s Armenian population in 2023.

Avanesov said the threat extends far beyond one church. He pointed to Armenian monasteries, churches, cemeteries, khachkars, monuments, historic neighborhoods and settlements that heritage advocates say Azerbaijan has destroyed, altered or presented in ways that erase or dispute their Armenian identity.

He accused Azerbaijan of carrying out a systematic campaign to eliminate evidence of the centuries-old Armenian presence in Artsakh.

Avanesov said the cathedral’s demolition also exposes the failure of the international response. Cultural heritage groups have spent years publishing photographs, satellite evidence and expert assessments warning that Armenian sites are at risk, but he said that documentation has rarely led to action capable of preventing their destruction.

“If the international community limits itself to documenting destruction after it has already occurred, this is not heritage protection; it is merely the retrospective registration of its destruction,” he said.

Avanesov called for permanent international monitoring, independent expert assessments and fact-finding missions. He also urged international organizations to systematically preserve satellite evidence, document individual cases of destruction and create mechanisms to identify and hold those responsible accountable.

He said Azerbaijan’s destruction of the cathedral in Stepanakert should serve as a warning that other Armenian monuments remaining in Artsakh are also in danger.

Avanesov linked the response to the cathedral’s demolition to previous cases involving violence against Armenians that generated widespread outrage.

He cited Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov, who killed Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan with an ax as Margaryan slept during a NATO-sponsored training program in Budapest in 2004.

Safarov was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison in Hungary. He was transferred to Azerbaijan in 2012, where President Ilham Aliyev immediately pardoned him. Safarov was also promoted following his return.

Avanesov also referred to Armenian soldier Kyaram Sloyan, who was killed and beheaded during fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in April 2016.

He argued that the public glorification of violence against Armenians and the celebration of destroyed Armenian monuments reflect a dangerous pattern that places other cultural sites at risk.

“Cultural genocide begins precisely when the destruction of a monument is no longer perceived as a crime and instead becomes a symbol of victory,” Avanesov said.

He urged international organizations and governments to treat Azerbaijan’s destruction of the Stepanakert cathedral as more than another incident to document after the damage has already been done.

For Avanesov, the question is whether international institutions will act while Armenian monuments still remain to be protected.

“Silence, delayed responses, and vague statements are no longer sufficient,” he said. “To save the Armenian cultural heritage of Artsakh, which constitutes a heritage of universal value, immediate, systematic, and measurable action is required — while the monuments that remain can still be saved.”

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