Azerbaijan has reportedly guaranteed protection of and free access to all Christian churches and monasteries in Nagorno-Karabakh.
The move comes amid concerns for Armenian houses of worship in the regions that will be administered by Azerbaijan under the terms of a Russia-brokered ceasefire.
Last month, the Armenian Apostolic See of Echmiadzin reported desecration and attacks on the Armenian cathedral in Shushi after Azerbaijani troops took control of Nagorno-Karabakh.
At the request of the local population, Russian soldiers who were sent to the region as “peacekeepers” have established a military garrison in the Dadivank monastery in the Kelbecer area, Fides reported.
In late September, Azerbaijan launched a military campaign to take parts of Nagorno-Karabakh, an ethnic Armenian enclave that is located within the borders of Azerbaijan.
According to the New York Times, the ceasefire calls for Armenia’s army to withdraw from Nagorno-Karabakh and be replaced by Russian peacekeepers. Azerbaijan will keep territory it gained in recent fighting. That includes a strategic town, known as Shusha to Azerbaijanis and Shushi to Armenians — the second-largest town in the region.
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