We visited the home of Samvel Manasyan, who was killed as a result of the war unleashed by the Azerbaijani side on September 27, 2020. We were greeted by 3-year-old Manvel. He wasn’t speaking fluently yet and couldn’t tell us much about his brother, but he regularly performed the national anthem of the Republic of Armenia for us and, like a true resident of Aparan, already knew a song dedicated to Aparan. He sang and pointed to his hero brother’s corner.

Samvel Manasyan was born on March 13, 2001. From an early age, his parents noticed the boy’s love for art; he first attended dance classes, then painting and sculpture. To master the profession of sculptor better, he enrolled in the Yerevan State Crafts College of Decorative Arts. The very khachkar (cross-stone) he drew became his memorial stone, which is placed in his house’s yard.

As part of Iravaban.net’s “Immortal Victims of the Artsakh War” series, his mother, Mrs. Sona, remembers that on September 27, 2020, she was busy with housework when she was informed that a war had started.

“I didn’t believe it, I couldn’t imagine it. Just a day before, I had a long conversation with him, his mood was good, he said, ‘Everything will be fine, mom.’ He didn’t tell much, he didn’t like to talk, he just wanted to come home on leave very much, but they didn’t let him, it was quarantine. On the day of the war, he was in Talish. The last time he called was on October 12, he asked about everyone,” the mother recounts.

Samvel and his comrades were surrounded in Talish, but they managed to break out of the encirclement. Samvel was killed in Martakert by a shell blast.

Before being drafted into the army, Samvel said: “If I go to the army, there will be a war, and I might not come back, my heart feels it.”