Fighting on the Shushi-Lisagor Road: 10 Out of 24 Soldiers Killed

On the night of November 3-4, Armenian volunteer forces known as the "Shushi Rapid Response" unit encountered heavy fire near Shushi. After several hours of fighting, 10 out of 24 soldiers were killed and 9 were wounded, while the remaining members returned to Shushi with the injured. By the morning of November 4, the enemy had taken control of the Shushi-Lisagor road, which connects Artsakh to Armenia, according to Hetq.am.

Hetq spoke with squad commander Spartak Tsaturyan about the unit’s actions. At 23:30 on November 3, the newly established unit received an order from the Shushi territorial defense headquarters to gather intelligence about tensions near "Jdrduz." The unit positioned themselves in trenches they had previously dug, armed with AK rifles and RPK machine guns, but lacking night vision equipment.

“We were next to Gevorg, he said, ‘That’s it, we are under attack, if I’m not mistaken, on positions Berd 12 and Berd 13, we have losses, we must move,’” Spartak Tsaturyan recounted.

None of the 24 soldiers were familiar with the terrain, and they were unaware of the enemy's advancing direction. They attempted to contact the Berd 12 personnel via radio but received no response.

The squad planned to move from Jdrduz to the attacked position on the Shushi-Lisagor road using four vehicles. In the passenger seat of one vehicle was Gevorg Petrosyan, while Spartak Tsaturyan drove another vehicle with three others in the back seat. As they left Jdrduz, the two vehicles turned off their lights and drove out of Shushi.

After just 1.5 km past the entrance of Shushi and around the first bend towards Lisagor, Spartak Tsaturyan saw gunfire directed at Gevorg Petrosyan's vehicle, which veered off the road and collided with rocks before stopping. The other vehicle was also caught under fire, with Spartak in the passenger seat.

“As we exited Shushi and turned, I saw bullets hitting Gevorg’s vehicle as if in a salute. At that moment, our windshield shattered, and Gevorg’s vehicle moved a few meters before hitting a rock and stopping. For a moment, I realized I was untouched, so I jumped out of the vehicle. I then approached and opened the back door of our vehicle, and one of the guys, Gogan, fell onto me. I pulled him out; he was suffocating. Maybe a bullet struck his shoulder when they hit the vehicle,” Spartak Tsaturyan explained. “Then, intense fire began on both our vehicle and Gevorg’s. I told the guys to take cover, and we returned fire. It was dark, and nothing was visible.”

From Gevorg's vehicle, two men were able to reach them, one was injured, stating he had been shot in the leg. Spartak ordered everyone else to move back while he continued to fire. However, during their retreat, they realized they were encircled.

On one side of the road was a gorge, while the other side featured a rocky hill, and above them was the 'Isa Spring.' Those who survived and had sustained minor injuries retreated toward the power station. Spartak attempted to advance along the road to assist the severely wounded, but constant fire made it impossible to get closer.

Spartak remained below the road for several hours, firing back but eventually realized he could not approach the vehicles and decided to retreat. Near the power station, a soldier identified only as “the captain” ordered them to take positions in a trench. They complied and began firing toward the gorge but soon realized they were alone in the trench, having lost contact with the captain and his men.

The remaining members exited the trench and encountered other members of their unit who were further back. The two other vehicles that left Shushi earlier had been shot at and were not advancing.

An ambulance attempted to reach them but could not proceed and was forced to turn back after encountering the enemy fire. Another ambulance came later, which also couldn’t move forward. While some survivors boarded the ambulance, it was hit, and only one person survived the explosion. Those who remained decided to return to Shushi.

On November 4, with dawn breaking, the enemy shelled the power station. The soldiers made it on foot to the entrance of the Isa Spring, where they encountered Armenian forces.

Some members of the squad had managed to reach their bunker at Shushi Technology University, where they had been staying, and reported what had transpired. While some of the injured had made it to Stepanakert, others reported that 10 of their comrades had died.

The casualties from the encircled squad included Gevorg Petrosyan, Narek Revazyan, Emin Karapetyan, Arthur Manasyan, Gurgen Sargsyan, Georgi Manucharyan, Hmayak Beglaryan, Azhdahak Kirakosyan, Hayk Chahalyan, and Rafik Gasparyan. The demoralizing loss affected the morale of the troops still at the bunker.

On November 6, Spartak and his comrade Hovhannes Ghandilyan decided to visit Artsakh President Araik Harutyunyan to present their account of the events. During the meeting, Araik asked them about the circumstances, indicating a lack of awareness of the situation on the ground. Spartak conveyed the discrepancies in the command structure and the chaos surrounding their encounter.

Later, Araik assured them that the bodies of their fallen comrades would be retrieved from the road, but it was later confirmed that some were not collected until November 11. The soldiers requested a new commander to improve morale among the troops, emphasizing their desire to participate in the defense of Shushi.

In the aftermath, while some wanted to return to Armenia, others moved to Askeran to regroup with various units until they were informed they could head home after the war's conclusion on November 9.

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