ARMENIANS EXPATRIATED FROM NORTH ARTSAKH SETTLE IN KARVACHAR

PanARMENIAN.Net - "The territory of Karvachar (Kelbajar) is being spontaneously settled by Armenians, expatriated from their residence places in North Artsakh. Unfortunately, official Yerevan and Stepanakert statements that there is no state policy on settling the security belt territories are true," Azg newspaper writes in its today's issue. Meanwhile, the article author notes that Azerbaijan pursues an official policy of peopling of former Armenian settlements in the territories of NKR that are occupied. Forced migrants from Getashen, Shahumian and other places mainly live in Karvachar. In May 1991, the newspaper reminds, the soviet army and OMON (special destination militia detachment) held an operation to deport the residents of Armenian villages of North Artsakh. "Our houses stayed on the other side of the Mrav Mounts," the present residents of Karvachar say. Getashen resident Yeghish Markosian has walked all over the territory of the former Kelbajar region. He shows the newspaper journalist innumerable khachkars (stone steles picturing crosses), churches, monasteries. "Where from the Turks have khachkars, churches, monasteries?" he asks. "Already 150 years ago it was a land inhabited by Armenians." When in 1992 Armenian forces entered Kelbajar, in the regional museum of the city they found a khachkar of the 10-th century with an inscription in Armenian, which was presented to the visitors as a monument of the Azeri culture. Dadivank famous monastery, where according to the tradition the relics of St. Apostle Thaddeus, the Enlightener of Armenia, are kept, is also situated in the Kelbajar territory. The name Kelbajar itself is the distorted Armenian place-name of Karvachar. "This land was Armenian and it remains Armenian," the former Getashen resident concludes.