October 4, 2020: The tense work continued in the editorial office. It was the 8th day of the war. A video is published in which the President of the Republic of Artsakh, Arayik Harutyunyan, awards the highest title of Hero of Artsakh to conscript David Lyova Grigoryan. I looked at the editor, he understood my gaze and said, “When he’s discharged, you’ll definitely interview him.” Pride and emotion were mixed together. We wanted to imagine who this “giant” was, what he had done to deserve such a title at that age, right on the battlefield. In November, we learned that David, the Hero of Artsakh, the 20-year-old “giant,” had fallen.
September 2024: We are in Sardarapat. I’m standing in front of David’s pictures, feeling infinite pain, pride, and regret.
“When I looked into his eyes, I felt like I was drowning in his gaze, that’s the kind of eyes my David had,” says his mother, Susanna Grigoryan, as part of Iravaban.net‘s “Immortal Victims of the Artsakh War” series.
During his service, David received the rank of sergeant, but his parents only learned about it together after his death. He was admitted to university and again didn’t boast, didn’t tell anyone. David quietly did his work, both in civilian life and on the battlefield.
When David was 11, his mother asked him which sport he wanted to continue – karate or chess. David chose chess, and when his mother remarked that karate would be better as he could defend himself, David said, “Mom, I never understood the point of hitting when you can explain with words.”
The peace-loving David was forced to fight in 2020 because the enemy doesn’t understand words. Friends have recounted how distressed David was when he hit an enemy tank. He remained silent for a long time, didn’t speak at all, then refused to “kill people,” but war leaves no other choice: “He refused to do the count. Friends approached and asked him to count, but he refused.“
David received the high title of “Hero of Artsakh” for destroying 15 tanks and one infantry fighting vehicle, but these are only the numbers that could be counted. David inflicted much heavier losses on the enemy.
“When the President of Artsakh came to our house, he said that after the 25th tank, they stopped counting because they were sure that if David was doing the calculation, he wouldn’t miss. During the war, 2 TOS were hit, one of which was hit by David,” said his mother.
David was fighting at the hottest point of the war when they contacted the positions and informed him that he was now a Hero of Artsakh. Eyewitnesses recount that not a single facial expression changed on David’s face. True to his modest nature, he remained silent about this and didn’t personally inform his family. And when he called home and his mother addressed him as “My hero son,” he was very surprised. David learned that the whole village, relatives, and friends were at their house and asked them to stop rejoicing: “Stop it, I haven’t done anything.”
“He didn’t call for three days. Believe me, I know my son very well, he would never have been captured under any circumstances. They tried to comfort me, saying that maybe he was hiding, maybe he was captured. I said if he hasn’t called for three days, then he’s gone,” says his mother.
David Lyova Grigoryan fell in battles for the freedom of the homeland on November 2.
Details are in the video.
Hasmik Sargsyan
