Details Surrounding the Deaths of Soldiers Killed Yesterday

Private Arthur Mkrtchyan and Junior Sergeant Rudik Gharibyan, who were killed as a result of an Azerbaijani provocation yesterday, were in the same position when a kamikaze drone struck them. This was reported to 24News by their sources.

Arthur Mkrtchyan was from Gyumri, born on September 21, 2002. He enlisted in the army on March 12, 2021, and was a wrestler. He has a sister, a brother, a mother, and a father. At the beginning of his service, he was in a training company, serving as a driver, before being transferred to a tank battalion where he served for eight months. He then moved to a special operations company, transitioning from a driver to a rifleman,” said the source.

Further details have emerged regarding how Arthur Mkrtchyan and Rudik Gharibyan met their deaths. “They had ascended to their position, and Arthur was supposed to come down on Friday. From morning until noon, the Azerbaijanis were firing, and there were ongoing clashes. At noon, they rested, and the guys said, ‘Okay, let’s take a break.’ Arthur and Rudik had their watch duty; it was their turn to be on post. While they were on guard, the Azerbaijanis deployed a drone on them. Arthur died on the spot, and Rudik’s head was injured by shrapnel. Rudik died an hour and a half later,” the source reported.

Arthur Mkrtchyan’s father is also a military man, serving in a unit in Gyumri.

It is notable that as a result of the combat operations yesterday, the Armenian side has three casualties. Initially, the Ministry of Defense reported that due to the provocations carried out by Azerbaijani units along the eastern direction of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border, soldiers of the RA Ministry of Defense’s N unit, Private Arthur Artem Mkrtchyan (born 2002) and Junior Sergeant Rudik Rafik Gharibyan (born 2002) were killed. This morning, in a press release, it was stated that after the provocations initiated by Azerbaijani units, a soldier of the RA Armed Forces, Private Vahan Vachagani Babayan (born 2003), was found dead from a gunshot wound in the intense exchange of fire area at midnight. “The condition of the two wounded soldiers is stable, and their lives are not in danger,” the Ministry of Defense stated in its announcement.