Azerbaijan's Peace With Armenia Is a Lie: Churches Bulldozed, Christians Driven Out, Political Prisoners Rotting in Jail

Azerbaijan Claims Peace With Armenia But Christian Heritage Sites Are Being Destroyed and Political Prisoners Remain Behind Bars

Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev has declared that peace with Armenia has been achieved, but a closer look reveals a deeply troubling reality for the world's first Christian nation.

Dr. Paul Murray, CEO of Save Armenia, challenged Aliyev's claims in a powerful op ed published in The Christian Post on February 24, 2026. Murray argues that true peace must be grounded in justice, mutual dignity, and the protection of fundamental rights.

Lasting peace cannot coexist with political prisoners.

Murray pointed to the case of former State Minister Ruben Vardanyan, who received a 20 year prison sentence in February 2026 on terrorism charges that human rights groups have widely condemned as politically motivated.

The humanitarian crisis is staggering. Over 120,000 ethnic Armenians were forced to flee Nagorno Karabakh following Azerbaijan's military offensive in September 2023, effectively ending centuries of Armenian Christian presence in the region.

Armenia became the world's first Christian nation in the fourth century. Armenian identity remains inseparable from faith traditions spanning seventeen centuries. Yet the sacred churches and monasteries of Nagorno Karabakh now face an uncertain future under Azerbaijani control.

Organizations like Caucasus Heritage Watch have used satellite imagery to document alarming alterations to dozens of Armenian Christian heritage sites, including the demolition of historic churches and the construction of mosques in their place. Murray questioned UNESCO's visibility in monitoring these sacred sites.

The situation gained international attention when Vice President JD Vance visited Armenia in February 2026, following a US brokered peace agreement signed in Washington D.C. in August 2025. However, that draft agreement notably lacks any commitment to protecting against religious persecution or preserving Christian heritage sites.

Armenia's Ancient Christian Heritage Under Threat as Azerbaijan Erases Centuries of Faith

Murray proposed five critical measures: prioritizing the release of political detainees through transparent legal processes, embedding religious freedom protections into the peace framework, supporting independent cultural heritage monitoring, maintaining Congressional oversight, and investing in civil society to strengthen Armenian Christian identity.

The Armenian National Committee of America and other advocacy groups continue to call for accountability, the protection of Christian holy sites, the return of Armenian refugees to their ancestral homeland, and the release of Armenian hostages held in Baku.

The Crusader's Opinion

Let us be absolutely clear about what is happening here. A Muslim majority nation invaded a Christian homeland, drove out every single Christian inhabitant, and is now systematically bulldozing their churches and monasteries. And the world calls this "peace." This is not peace. This is ethnic cleansing with a press release. Armenia was Christian before most of Europe even heard the Gospel. Seventeen centuries of faith, and Azerbaijan thinks it can erase that with a military offensive and a show trial. Ruben Vardanyan sits in prison for 20 years because he dared to represent his people. If a Christian nation had done this to a Muslim population, every government on earth would be imposing sanctions by sundown. The silence is deafening and the hypocrisy is evil.

Take Action

• Contact your Congressional representatives and urge them to demand religious freedom protections be included in any Armenia Azerbaijan peace agreement. Find your representative at house.gov
• Support Armenian Christians through The Shepherd's Shield, which provides aid to persecuted Christians worldwide
• Donate to Open Doors, which tracks and supports Christians facing persecution including those displaced from Nagorno Karabakh
• Support International Christian Concern, which has been actively reporting on the Armenia Azerbaijan conflict and advocating for Armenian Christians
• Sign Amnesty International's petition calling for the release of Ruben Vardanyan and other political prisoners held in Azerbaijan at amnesty.org
• Share this story on social media using #NagornoKarabakh #ArmenianChristians #ReligiousFreedom to raise awareness about the ongoing persecution