Images showing the demolition of the house of Richard Sorge, a famous intelligence officer and an employee of the Soviet military intelligence agency, who operated under the guise of a journalist in Germany and Japan before and during World War II, have been circulated.
In videos shared on social media, it is noted that the building where Sorge once lived in the Sabunchu district of Baku was purchased by an individual and demolition work is being carried out. The issue has caused significant public resonance.
Modern.az website sent an inquiry to the State Service for Protection, Development and Restoration of Cultural Heritage regarding the issue. The agency stated that the said building is not included in the list of historical and cultural monuments under state protection:
“The building said to have been inhabited by Richard Sorge is not included in the list of historical and cultural monuments under state protection. During the conducted monitoring, this object was also not registered as a newly discovered monument”.
It should be noted that Richard Sorge was born on October 4, 1895, in the Sabunchu settlement of Baku, into the family of the German Wilhelm Sorge. Richard Sorge's father, the youngest of nine children, was among the foreigners who came to Baku to work as an engineer in the oil fields.
