A ghost town. Agdam Bashny.Net

The city, whose name in the Brezhnev era was too well known to every self-respecting and companion Soviet socialist alcoholic ...





City, to whom in the beginning of XVIII-th century gave the name "White dome" and now called "Caucasian Hiroshima". City, where a fruitless search for someone to live can meet his own death, stepped on a mine with a stamp "Made in the USSR».
It Agdam. Former city with a population of almost 30 thousand people, the former center of Agdam region of Azerbaijan USSR; and now a monument -syurrealistichesky stupid brutality of war on the territory of the unrecognized, but proud of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic.



In Soviet times, the Soviet people are not formally divided into nations, the more hostile. Forget the jokes and new years. In plain, cozy Agdam peacefully cooked cheese and pressed brandy Azerbaijanis and 26 km from here, in the mountain peacefully Stepanakert silk weaving and prevented concrete Armenians.
Creative work has given way to a devastating massacre, when the Soviet Union collapsed, all the people thought of the "right to self-determination", and the map of the region inflamed hot spots. Launched in Karabakh and the war that lasted from 1990 to 1994. He found himself in the firing line and the city of winemakers - Agdam. At 7 kilometers from the Azerbaijani militia captured the strategic storage of ammunition, including 200 wagons rockets, with which was very convenient to shell rebellious Stepanakert. Fired a long and bloody, not thinking that sooner or later this stupid anger will return twice the rebound force.





Peaceful people hastily left the conflict zone, leaving the spring of 1993 in Agdam only 6000 soldiers. "We are running from death, leaving his life. We run in the past, leaving its future ... "- a verse of one of the refugees. The local garrison was tired to fight and surrounded the Agdam 6000 soldiers of the Defense Army of Nagorno-Karabakh (not counting tanks and helicopters). Armenians decided to take revenge, to make so that from Aghdam never fired on their settlements. They practically razed the city to the ground, mined all the approaches to Aghdam. It was in July 1993. Eighteen months later, the war ended nominally, and the "White dome" still lies in ruins, and is controlled by the Karabakh war.



When the curious tourists come here, local officers usually try to discourage them from visiting a ghost town. Say, mines everywhere ponatykano, weeds swarming with snakes, and generally is not surprising to get lost among the ruins, many of which took a fancy to the rabble, the local homeless. Nevertheless - passed, and even begs to accompany. Caucasians were and are hospitable people ...







Today, Aghdam dead for local politics - a buffer zone between the still angry at each other-Karabakh and Azerbaijan. And for the local economy Agdam - the field of building materials. However, the results agree here only the most desperate "Stalker", carrying a brick, wire, pipes off to patch up the wounds of war in other settlements of Karabakh.



The only building in Agdam, which was and remains almost intact - a mosque wounded gunfire. Plus the old Muslim cemetery. Fate has kept sacred places of the wicked anger artillery.





City Agdam visitors love to take pictures of the minaret towers - one tower, which survived the steps. Today, the mosque, except for nostalgic tourists and refugees come only pigs and cows. Among Azerbaijanis from the surrounding areas there are rumors that the mosque will be restored soon, neighbors, Armenians dream of is to restore the old Armenian church in the center of Agdam. Dreaming is not bad, the main thing - to again opened fire.