The Azerbaijani authorities have destroyed a monument in the village of Astghashen in Artsakh dedicated to local fighters who were killed during the Artsakh liberation struggle, according to Artsakh Monuments.

The claim is based on an analysis of satellite images taken between April 19, 2024, and July 15, 2025.

“During the same period, the memorial commemorating residents of Astghashen who died in the Great Patriotic War was also destroyed. The monument had been erected in the 1970s. Does Maria Zakharova have anything to say about this?” the statement said.

The report comes amid ongoing concerns over the fate of Armenian cultural and historical heritage in territories that came under Azerbaijani control following the events of 2023.

On September 19, 2023, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive against Artsakh, placing the territory under intensive shelling. One day later, on September 20, the Artsakh authorities accepted a ceasefire proposal put forward by the command of the Russian peacekeeping mission and agreed to Baku’s conditions, including the disarmament of the Defense Army and the dissolution of the Republic of Artsakh.

According to the cited figures, 223 people were killed during the offensive, including 20 civilians, six of whom were minors. Beginning on September 24, the forced displacement of the population of Artsakh commenced, with more than 100,000 people relocating to Armenia. According to some reports, around 20 Armenians remained in Artsakh; 11 of them later returned to Armenia, one died, and one was detained.