Famous historian Gulnara Abdullaeva during an interview for Ukrinform told about the changes of the Khan Palace and why it will never again have a chance to get on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
‘If we are talking about material heritage, we have crumbs left after 1944, but they are being destroyed now too. More precisely, they are being systematically destroyed, erasing the historical and genetic memory of Crimean Tatars from the territory of Crimea itself. In particular, we are losing the Khan’s Palace, which can no longer be included in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites, because the authenticity of the structure is broken. We know that UNESCO could not do anything even with Chersonesos Taurica, which is also being destroyed, although it is already on the list,’ the historian noted.
‘There is experience in the world in restoring historical monuments. For example, Warsaw was completely destroyed and it was rebuilt. I think it will be the same with Crimea – we will restore it. But we must be prepared to face a very large scale of destruction,’ Gulnara said when asked about the restoration of monuments.
We shall remind you that earlier the CTRC noted that under the guise of ‘restoration’ the Russian occupants continue to destroy the famous Khan Palace in occupied Bakhchysaray. Unfortunately, now we are witnessing the destruction of the 16th century monument, which is a unique architectural monument and the only example of Crimean Tatar palace architecture in the world.
We should remember about it not only when something collapses or when the occupants destroy another hall. We need to constantly pay attention to this issue and react to the illegal actions of the occupiers in advance, so that it is not too late.
The CTRC notes that the occupying authorities will sooner or later be held accountable for all illegal actions, including the so-called ‘restoration’.