I have given a heroic son, I do not understand the silence of the Ministry of Defense: the father of fallen Hrach Piliposyan

Seventeen days after the death of conscript soldier Hrach Piliposyan, his father, Vachik Piliposyan, still does not know the circumstances under which his 20-year-old son was killed on June 18 at a combat post.

"I have given a heroic son; my demand is that they come, offer condolences, and say, 'Your son is a hero, he did not fear, he did not hide.' My child was not the type to hide; he did not have the psychology or upbringing to do so. I do not understand the silence of the Ministry of Defense, and I am waiting for them to say that Hrach fought against the Turk and was killed; I am not expecting anything else," Vachik Piliposyan told NEWS.am.

David Shahnazaryan, the leader of the "United Vardenis" faction of the Vardenis council, informed NEWS.am about the casualty due to enemy gunfire in the direction of Vardenis. The Ministry of Defense did not release a statement about Hrach Piliposyan's death from enemy fire. Days later, on June 23, the Investigative Committee announced that a criminal case had been opened regarding the circumstances of Hrach Piliposyan's death. Hrach was from the Byurakan community in the Aragatsotn province. He was laid to rest in his homeland on June 21.

"I spoke briefly with the investigator, but he did not give me clear information. The investigator said that an inquiry is underway, nothing will be hidden, and we will know the truth; if someone is guilty, they will be punished. I asked the investigator what they understood during conversations with the soldiers, and he said that his hypothesis is that Hrach was killed by an enemy bullet. That is all he told me. I did not receive a call from the Ministry of Defense; there were people from the Ministry at the funeral, and they approached me, but I did not have the heart to talk. I was not told anything about the circumstances of Hrach's death; I only said that I gave such a child to the homeland, so what happened to my treasure? I learned from conversations with soldiers that Hrach was in an unnoticed part by the enemy; they had communicated that there was movement, and they said, 'Hrach, wait, I will talk to the headquarters, I will climb up to the post.' Hrach did not wait and ran to the post," said Hrach's father, adding that he heard that they had difficulty lowering Hrach because the enemy continued firing.

According to Vachik Piliposyan, Hrach received fatal wounds to the heart and head. The father is convinced that during his 11 months of service, his son had no issues with his fellow soldiers.

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