When Stepanakert was first shelled from the Alazan-type missile system from Shushi on 25 September, 1991, and then, not only from the fortress city, but also from the Azerbaijani villages turned into military bases, the capital and the surrounding Armenian settlements began to be shelled, initially, very few believed that the Armenians of Artsakh would withstand this great catastrophe.

Senor Hasratyan, former head of the Information and Public Relations Department of the Artsakh Armed Forces, writes about this on his Facebook page.

“But thanks to the high spiritual and volitional qualities of our people, we not only resisted, but were able to create a heroic battle under Karin, a glorious victory in Shushi, breaking the blockade and achieving significant success. Today, the enemy is trying to bring us back to the cruel reality of the distant 91 and 92. However unfavorable the course of events for us at the moment, we are obliged to rediscover ourselves: to move forward resolutely. This is the only way to salvation – we have to overcome it again and achieve our final victory. And that is definitely possible,” Hasratyan says.