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Amalia Margaryan

A Soldier’s Story: Artur Amiraghyan Killed While Trying to Retrieve Commander’s Body

Everyone in the Tavush town of Noyemberyan knows the Amiraghyan brothers.

Artur, the middle one, never made it back from the war in Artsakh. Two children now have no father.

37-year-old Artur, nicknamed Poto, was a contract soldier set to leave the army in two months.

An Azerbaijani sniper killed Artur when he was trying to drag the body of the unit commander from the battlefield.

“The commander told us not to leave his body behind if he was killed,” says Artur’s older brother Andranik. “He went to remove the body, but…”

Artur’s body and those of others killed in his unit were removed from the battlefield in Kubatlu (Vorotan) forty-eight days after they died. 

Family members recognized Artur’s body in a video circulated by the Azerbaijanis. This helped them to track down Artur’s body and bring it home.

“It was important for me to bring him back. I couldn’t have looked into their eyes if I failed to do so. None of us can do what my brother did,” says Andranik, referring to his parents’ grief if Artur wasn’t found.

Araksya Amiraghyan, Artur’s mother, says she first heard about his decision to go to the front when Artur had already reached Artsakh.

“Before he went, I’d call, telling him not to go, that he hadn’t seen his kids for two months. He probably felt that if he came home and saw his children, he wouldn’t have been able to leave for Artsakh,” Mrs. Amiraghyan says.

Artur and his wife Heghineh were married for fourteen years. She wipes away the tears when we talk about her husband. Her son Vram, aged nine, also cries.

Heghineh says Artur had planned to take Vram for surgery. The boy was born with a cleft palate. The couple dreamt of the day when their children married and had families of their own.

Heghineh recounts that every time Artur was ordered to a certain military post, family and friends would gather around the dinner table for a big send off. Artur oversaw the barbecue.  The family would welcome him home in similar fashion. 

“I knew the day and hour of his return. I cook his favorites, dolma and various salads. I’d watch him hug the kids. He’d bring them small items from the post, making them happy,” Heghineh recounts.

Inga, the couple’s daughter, has posted photos of her father on the walls of the house, inscribing them with the word “hero”.

Vram wants to know why his father is absent.

“He asked me why so many people have visited the house. He wanted to know if his father had died. I told the boy that he’s somewhere far away,” says Mrs. Araksya Amiraghyan.

Twelve-year-old Inga remembers her father’s last words to her – “Be strong, I’m OK.”

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