Raya Hayiryan, who was 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 in 2020 they were forced to be displaced as a result of the war unleashed by the Azerbaijani side, but after 9 November they returned to Artsakh.

“We had a house, we had a recreation area, a flower shop, we had a house in the city, and we left everything. But I do not think even a bit about it, that we had left so much. I think that we had so much victims, and would wish that all of them had  at least got out safely. Azerbaijanis are thinking of eliminating the Armenian nation, but the Armenian nation is so strong,” she said.

Ms. Raya also told about the nine months of the blockade, which they spent in the bread queues. She emphasizes that even under those conditions; they did not think that they would come out.

“It’s a shame that today you brought the Karabakh people to such a state, what should we do? I am ashamed to go to the canteen. We used to share everything to everyone, now we go and collect something. Imagine how difficult this is. There was not a single person who passed by our home whom we did not give something; now we are in this situation. My heart wants to explode, I can’t speak,” our interlocutor said.

Speaking about the reintegration proposed by the Azerbaijani side, she says that she is not ready to return to Artsakh.

“But I would like there to be a territory where all the people of Karabakh would gather and create a new Karabakh. It is not possible with them. They were ripping open a pregnant woman’s belly, taking out the baby, and slaughtering it. How can we live with them? Returning to Karabakh is not possible. They are vampires. It is not possible to live with them. There is no way. We were only hoping that our people would be saved, but do you know how many victims we have? Very many,” Mrs. Raya said.

She says that they spent three days on the way, and were stopped every five minutes.

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“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/en/become-a-supporter

Details in the video.

Hasmik Sargsyan