Azernews.Az

Vice-President of the International Council for the Preservation of Monuments and Sites of UNESCO (ICOMOS) Zeynab Gul Unal visited Aghdam on April 17.

The vice-president was joined by a delegation led by the head of the State Service for the Protection, Development and Restoration of Cultural Heritage under the Azerbaijani Culture Ministry, Azad Jafarli.

During the visit, they examined the Imarat complex in Aghdam, the Alley of Martyrs, the Drama Theater, the Juma Mosque, the Bread Museum, the Chess House, the Shahbulag fortress, and the mosque in Giyasli village.

The trip was also attended by the senior consultant of the Special Representation of the President of Azerbaijan in the liberated territories (with the exception of the Shusha region) Araz Imanov and the president of ICOMOS Azerbaijan, Sadagat Davudova.

ICOMOS is an international non-governmental organization that is comprised of professionals, experts, representatives from local authorities, companies, and heritage organizations and is dedicated to the conservation and enhancement of the architectural and landscape heritage throughout the world.

Armenia destroyed and vandalized Azerbaijani territories during the three-decade occupation between the early 1990s and late 2020. The scale of destruction and massacres on Azerbaijan's formerly occupied territories is shocking, implying deep hatred and animosity toward the Azerbaijani people, with many experts describing these mass destructions and killings as genocide.

The country's war-torn Aghdam region alone is seen as a stark example of Armenian hatred and enmity. Aghdam, known as the "Hiroshima of the Caucasus" astounds delegations from all over the world with its infamous scenes of destruction.

Currently, the work is underway to restore Azerbaijan's liberated lands. Azerbaijan will rebuild its recently liberated areas in four stages. The initial stage includes the solution of the issues of governance and security, and infrastructure, while the subsequent stages include the solution of the issues of social services activities, reconstruction, and development of the economy.

In 2021, Azerbaijan allocated $1.5 billion for the reconstruction of liberated territories, followed by AZN 2.2 billion ($1.2 billion) in 2022. These funds will be used primarily to restore infrastructure (electricity, gas, water, communications, roads, education, health, and so on) as well as cultural and historical monuments.

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