Hay Zinvor

INVINCIBLE UNION: A STRONG ARMY AND POPULATION

Last week, the Azerbaijanis shelled not only our positions in the direction of Tavush, but also the civilian population and infrastructure. However, even in the focus of the shelling, there was no panic among the residents. They, as always, “kept their positions,” stood firm and confident on their land, did not leave their homeland for a moment.

Accompanied by a young resident of the village, Karen Sazbandyan, we run through the streets of Aygepar, under regular fire of the enemy. “Let’s pass this section very quickly. You can see clearly their outpost from here.”

The village, which is in the zone of direct visibility from the enemy’s military bases, suffered the most material damage this week, felt the tremors of the bombing. “Mainly grenade launchers, ATS, larger caliber weapons worked in the direction of our village. Let’s run through here as well. We are in their field of vision,” our guide suggests, pointing to the nearest house. “This house was also hit.”

Crossing the dangerous part, we find ourselves in the yard of the last house of the village next to one of the Azerbaijani military bases.

Grandpa Garnik greets us and immediately invites us to the balcony of his house, which is “sheltered” with stones and vines, from where the enemy’s base is literally a few hundred meters away. We pass through an iron gate, which resembles a net after the shelling. The walls of the house are completely covered with traces of bullets. “We are walking in disguise,” says Grandpa Garnik. “Is it fair that people walk in disguise in their own house? For four or five hours, we were under constant shelling.”

Grandpa Garnik says that, both in Soviet times and now, he has no hatred for the neighboring country, an Azerbaijani peasants. According to him, all this is another political game of the military-political elite of the neighboring state, as a result of which, as always, ordinary people suffer on both sides. “As soon as the danger of demanding their resignation matures, the Azerbaijani authorities order a provocation at the border to divert the people’s attention.”

Despite the daily danger, the he says he will never leave his father’s house, his land and water. His parents and grandfathers were born and lived here, his grandchildren and great-grandchildren will grow up here. “I have to keep the border with my own way, by staying here.”

We are in another house in the village. Mrs. Lida shows her house, or rather what is left of the house. “Here was our kitchen.” At first, the shell exploded here,” she says, and as she enters the next room, she points to the huge section of the ceiling, with a huge hole from a shell.

Mrs. Lida remembers that years ago, the current Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his wife were hosted and spent the night in this house. “Like the prime minister, she too never gets tired or complains,” she says. “I will not go anywhere else from here no matter what,” she says confidently.

We are in Nerkin Karmiraghbyur community of Tavush region. Like other border communities in the region, they have seen the “bitter fruits” of the enemy’s provocations in recent days and recalled what seemed to be the days of war. Mrs. Sveta will never forget the shock she experienced during the bombing of her house. “In the morning, quite a few houses in our village were already damaged. It occurred to me that it’s okay, they didn’t hit our house, this time we were saved. But at that moment, they hit our house.” She says it was an occasion to remember the famous lines of Avetik Isahakyan’s poem “To Arms”. “Know that rivers and winds sleep, but the enemy never sleeps.”