Karakend

Karakend, or Berdashen is a village in the Khojavend District of Azerbaijan, in the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Until 2023 it was controlled by the breakaway Republic of Artsakh. The village had an ethnic Armenian-majority population until the expulsion of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan following the 2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh.

History

During the Soviet period, the village was a part of the Martuni District of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast.
During the First Nagorno-Karabakh War, on November 20, 1991, an Azerbaijani MI-8 military helicopter, carrying a peacekeeping mission team consisting of 13 Azerbaijani government officials, 2 Russian and 1 Kazakhstani Ministry of Internal Affairs officials, 3 Azerbaijani journalists and 3 helicopter crewmen was shot down by Armenian forces near the village. All 22 people on board were killed in the crash.

Historical heritage sites

Historical heritage sites in and around the village include a 12th-century khachkar, the 17th-century church of Surb Astvatsatsin, the chapel of Mets Nahatak built in 1676, a 17th/18th-century shrine and the fortress of Kusaberd, also known as Aghjkaberd.

Economy and culture

As of 2015, the village has a municipal building, a house of culture, a secondary school, a kindergarten, six shops, and a medical centre.

Demographics

The village had 1,498 inhabitants in 2005, and 1,606 inhabitants in 2015.