Historic Holy Savior Cathedral Shelled

A 19th century cathedral has sustained damage as the Turkish-Azerbaijani driven conflict continues in Nagorno-Karabakh. The Holy Savior Cathedral is part of the Armenian Apostolic Church. 

The Holy Savior Cathedral, also known as the Ghazanchetsots Cathedral, had its dome pierced by a shell that also damaged the interior.

Media reports said some children were inside the cathedral in the town of Shusha at the time of the shelling, and although they were not wounded, they suffered from stress after the attack.

Hours later, the cathedral came under more shelling that wounded two Russian journalists, one of whom was hospitalized in grave condition, according to Armenian officials.

The Armenian Foreign Ministry denounced the shelling as a “monstrous crime and a challenge to the civilized humankind,” warning Azerbaijan that targeting religious sites amounts to a war crime.

Built in 1888, the cathedral suffered significant damage during ethnic violence in 1920. It was restored after fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces in the 1990s and is the Armenian Apostolic Church’s diocesan headquarters in Nagorno-Karabakh, which it calls the Republic of Artsakh.

Standing 115 feet tall, it is understood to be one of the largest Armenian churches in the world.

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