Shusha hosts Islamic World Cultural Forum

The 1st Cultural Forum of the Islamic World is taking place in Shusha under the theme “Protection and Revival of Cultural Heritage in the Post-Conflict Period.”

Participants in the event include Emin Huseynov, Special Representative of the President of Azerbaijan in the Aghdam, Fuzuli, and Khojavand districts; Aydin Karimov, Special Representative in the Shusha district; Deputy Ministers of Culture Farid Jafarli and Saadat Yusifova; along with other officials and media representatives, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

The forum will feature panel discussions focused on the protection and restoration of cultural heritage in the post-conflict period.

Shusha, often referred to as the "pearl of Karabakh" and the cultural capital of Azerbaijan, holds a deeply symbolic and strategic significance in Azerbaijani history, heritage, and identity.

During the First Karabakh War in the early 1990s, Armenian forces occupied Shusha on May 8, 1992.

The liberation of Shusha came during the Second Karabakh War (September–November 2020), a 44-day conflict that resulted in significant territorial gains for Azerbaijan. The Battle of Shusha, which took place from November 4 to November 8, 2020, was a turning point in the war. Azerbaijani special forces advanced through mountainous terrain in challenging conditions and engaged in intense close-quarters combat to retake the city. On November 8, President Ilham Aliyev announced the liberation of Shusha, calling it a historic victory that paved the way for the end of the war.

By Khagan Isayev