Zoya Tovmasyan, forcibly displaced from the occupied Republic of Artsakh, told in the framework of “Artsakh: Armenian Genocide 2023. Stories of Survivors” documentary project of Iravaban.net, that she had been forced to be displaced from Artsakh also in 2020, as a result of the war unleashed by Azerbaijan and that she was a witness to all wars.
“We were living our normal lives when they started shooting on 19 September. On 25 September, we were already on the emigration path. 9 of us went out. They were shooting at the city as well. One of them had just come out of the “cellar”: he was hit right in the center and his neck was cut. We could not go out after that; the noise was so loud that it was dangerous. It lasted a day, and then we were told that we should leave. We also went to Stepanakert. We took almost nothing with us, because life is a sweet thing. We left everything and came. I cannot imagine what will happen next, how it will turn out,” she said.
Mrs. Zoya tells about the 10 months of blockade as well.
“Now that the children have come here, they are not satisfied with candy or sausage, they are children who don’t eat, now they eat whatever we have,” Mrs. Zoya said and smiled.
She talks about how the genocide occurs and describes that they saw roadblocks set up by the enemy. “You do not know if you want to pass there, will you be allowed or not.”
“Artsakh: Armenian Genocide 2023. Stories of Survivors” documentary project of Iravaban.net is aimed at collecting the memories and testimonies of citizens forcibly displaced from Artsakh occupied by Azerbaijan, about the genocide of the Armenians of Artsakh committed by Azerbaijan, atrocities, the days of war, the path of deportation, etc.
Iravaban.net seeks help from citizens who will voluntarily agree to translate materials into different languages: Russian, English, French, Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Georgian, Chinese…
You can write to our e-mail address at: [email protected]
To donate for realization of the project: https://iravaban.net/become-a-supporter
Details in the video.
Hasmik Sargsyan
