September 12, 2007 - 20:01 AMT
Russian Embassy in Baku receives numerous complaints about Christian cemetery demolition
Every day the Russian Embassy in Azerbaijan received complaint about the decision of Baku authorities to replace the graves of the Nariman cemetery also known as Montinskoe or Armenian cemetery, where Russians, Jews, Tatars, Georgians and Armenians were buried.

Nariman cemetery director Kyamran Mammadov assures that "the replacement of graves is conducted at the state's expense in compliance with the decision on construction of a highway to extend through the cemetery." "No problems with the relatives of the deceased have emerged so far," he added, IA Regnum reports.

As it was reported earlier, under the pretext of building a highway Baku demolishes a Christian cemetery (the Nariman cemetery), where Armenians, Jews and Russians were buried.

Although local authorities assure of reinterment, photos in Internet show a complete dump. The photographers say the bulldozers just raze the graves to the ground depriving the relatives to rebury the remains.

The city administration says exhumation and reinterment is performed in accord with ethnic and religious traditions in the presence of relatives of the deceased. Meanwhile, the Jewish News Agency reports that "observance of Jewish traditions is restricted to the fact that grave-diggers throw the ashes into sacks and then give them to the relatives."