Since September 30th, 22-year-old contract soldier Ashot Hayrapetyan’s family did not receive any news from him. He fought in the heaviest battles during the war.
His relatives are praying to God that he is at least a prisoner. “No parent would want that, but we do. We just want him to be alive. We want him to be here physically so that he can return home,” Ashot’s aunt, Liana Sargsyan, said.
She told Aravot Daily in an interview that Ashot was serving at the intelligence base in Goris. In the early morning of September 27th, Liana said that they woke the boys up and took them to Mekhakavan (Jabrayil). The family was able to get into contact with Ashot until September 30th. That afternoon was the last time they spoke to Ashot.
“We did not have any news from him until October 2nd. We thought that his phone died. We called his commander and friends, and they told us that everything is fine. Then, we learned from several sources that the commander gave an order on September 30th that seven soldiers should penetrate the enemy’s positions. They went and did not return. We learned that the seven soldiers were wounded, and no one went to save them. They explained that it was too dangerous, and we do not need any extra losses,” Liana said.
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She and Ashot’s parents believed that it would have been possible to save the seven soldiers if they had only tried. Liana said that the entire base is silent about the incident. They learned the news from volunteers and random people who were in the area. When they call the commander, he rejects their call.
“We know that one of the boy’s phones worked until halfway through October. We called him sometimes, which gives us a reason to think that he either fell prisoner or waited for help that he did not get,” Liana said.
Ashot’s parents have appealed to all the possible agencies, including the Red Cross, the Ministry of Defense, and the Special Committee. Liana said that Ashot and the other boys were not included on any lists from September 30th until November 13th. “On November 14th, they were included on the missing in action lists, but we don’t know on what basis. We looked for them in different videos, including those of living soldiers and prisoners of war, but we don’t know anything for certain. Just the fact that his friend’s phone was reachable gives us reason to think that perhaps it was possible to save them.”
“He served in Omar for two years. When he returned from the army, he removed his uniform, and then he put it back on. The child took care of his family. His sister died when she was 16 from a heart attack. His mother is 40 years old. She already lost her one child; she won’t be able to bear this pain. We hope that he is at least a prisoner so he can return. When we lost contact with Ashot during the first week of the war, we divided into groups as a family. All of us went to different hospitals and morgues to find Ashot. My poor mother checked 40 frozen bodies one at a time to see if our child was any of them,” Liana said.
This uncertainty is bringing more pain to the family. Liana said that they also appealed to the Human Rights Defender. It seems as though the Ministry of Defense does not wish to carry out an internal investigation. Liana said that they appealed to the ministry, but the ministry is unable to give any concrete information due to the fact that Armenia is still in martial law and the commanding staff has not returned from the positions.
Ashot’s father has been in Artsakh for five days. Liana said that they appealed to all the official bodies to allow them to look among the dead bodies. They said that the Red Cross and Russian peacekeepers are going to enter the territories to look for boys in the following days.
“Ashot was trustworthy, contained, and modest. His eyes were always sad because of the burdens he carried. After his sister died, he became more reserved. I never found out whether he loved anyone or what dreams he had,” Ashot’s aunt said in tears.
Nelly Babayan
