“It was shelled, and a Smerch hit it too - I myself saw it. I saw the smoke rising, came over, and saw people in their basements.”
“Even now (meaning after moving to Armenia – editor’s note), when you ask that little child, ‘Are you going to kindergarten?’ he says, ‘No, I’m going to the village kindergarten.’ You feel oppressed because you are not in your birthplace, on your own land.”
“Even now, the children are afraid when they remember the day of the attack.”
“I had a very large and valuable library, more than 1,000 books. It was the work of my entire life, and for me that is the greatest loss.”
“I filled a chest with our photographs, the children’s discs, the greeting cards the children made at school and kindergarten, the first tooth, the child’s maternity hospital documents, and my graduation apron.”
“I left behind 5 tons of wheat and 10 tons of barley.”
During the months of the blockade, people in Artsakh lived under conditions of severe shortages of food, medicine, fuel, and other essential supplies, while constantly being subjected to psychological pressure and living in uncertainty. The one-day war that followed the blockade ultimately broke the spirit of the people of Artsakh, and they were subjected to forced displacement.
The stories of a people who endured blockade, war, and forced displacement are documented in a joint fact-finding report prepared by the International and Comparative Law Center and the Armenian Center for Justice and Human Rights. The report is based on in-depth interviews conducted with 83 individuals forcibly displaced from Artsakh. The respondents represent five cities and 37 rural communities of Artsakh, sharing their personal, family, and community experiences.
The report describes the living conditions of the population during the blockade: food shortages, queues for bread and other food products, hunger, difficulties in accessing electricity, water, medical care, and education, rising prices of goods, restrictions on transportation, internet access, and telephone communications, as well as challenges affecting children. It also examines the security environment that emerged under blockade conditions, characterized by constant threats, psychological pressure, and uncertainty. The report includes analyses of border tensions, shootings and manifestations of violence, threatening statements made at the state level, and threats disseminated online. Particular attention is devoted to the role of the Russian peacekeepers in Artsakh, regarding which the population’s assessments were mixed. The report also covers the conditions of sheltering and evacuating civilians, the damage caused to life, health, and property as a result of the attack, as well as cases of disappearance and captivity. In addition, it presents details regarding the process of the population’s forced displacement, property losses, and the subsequent lives of the displaced persons in Armenia.
The fact-finding report is not only a record of the past but also a foundation for future accountability and the establishment of justice. It is intended to serve as a documented basis for legal proceedings.