OREANDA-NEWS. September 4, 2008. The Commission of the Russian Federation for UNESCO expresses indignation about the fact that the criminal aggression of Georgia against South Ossetia not only brought to irreplaceable loss of human lives, but also entailed desecration of historical and cultural monuments, orthodox Christian places of worship of Caucasus and ancient Byzantium.

Specifically, a group of unique buildings of the 3rd century constituting an architectural preserve was razed to the ground; explosive shells severely damaged the St. George church (8th-9th centuries), the Holy Mother church (17th century), the synagogue building and other historic and architectural sites in Tskhinvali.

The original habitat of the South Ossetian people was irreparably damaged. Georgian authorities, therefore, severely violated the fundamental international legal acts, such as the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict, the 1972 Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage, and the 2003 UNESCO Declaration, which make a state responsible for destruction, if it fails to take appropriate measures to prohibit, prevent, stop, and punish any intentional destruction of such cultural heritage.

The Commission of the Russian Federation for UNESCO is convinced that these barbarous actions should be strongly condemned by the international community and primarily UNESCO.