The Battalion was Soaked and Morale Was Low, Retreat Happened Without an Order: Witness

In the Central Judicial District of Yerevan, President Judge John Hairapetyan presided over a court session on October 11 regarding the case of Ishkhan Vahanian, the commander of a battalion from one of the military units, whose witness, Karen Arustamyan, who had a service relationship with Vahanian, was being questioned.

“When we started the recruitment process for new conscripts, the general training process related to the coronavirus was implemented in the second defensive sector. The process was primarily class-based, conducted separately. After that, they were transferred to subordinate units where the educational process continued,” noted the witness.

In response to the prosecutor's question whether the battalion's personnel were prepared to carry out combat tasks, the witness replied, “In terms of readiness, it would have been much better if they had trained for six months. If they hadn’t trained for six months, it definitely becomes incomplete.”

When asked whether the 5th battalion had properly fulfilled its obligations during the period from September 27 to October 4, the witness replied, “The 5th infantry battalion participated in combat operations up to the 3rd inclusive. There was active direct contact with the enemy on the right flank, our Armenian soldiers exhibited heroic moments. On the 3rd, in the rear position of the defense area, where we had artillerymen and anti-tank means, it was reported that one company of the 5th battalion retreated without any specific clarification from the command on why such a decision was made.”

The personnel were relocated to Hadrut; by the 4th, they were already at the primary control point on the left side of the highway from the 9th kilometer, where I was. The primary control point was in the 5th battalion’s line, slightly left towards Fizuli. There was no authorization from me or the commander, but around 1 to 2 AM, it was reported that the remaining personnel were retreating. I instructed the unit commander to urgently present themselves to the unit’s headquarters; I went there, met them, and they had already moved 2-3 kilometers back from their defense line. I encountered the personnel at that intersection, had a private conversation with both the conscript soldiers, and the sergeant and officer corps. The personnel were in a soaked condition, in a demoralized state. I instructed them to go to the trench following the first trench; I also walked about 400-500 meters and returned to my control point. Some time later, I learned that this personnel had also retreated.”

When asked whether a report was received regarding Ishkhan Vahanian's injury, the witness said no.

According to the accusation, Ishkhan Armen Vahanian is charged with committing publicly dangerous acts, as he, having been appointed on October 9, 2020, as the commander of the 5th infantry battalion of the Defense Army, with the rank of major, and holding the responsibility of directly overseeing the conscript and junior officer corps of the same battalion, did not actively participate in the combat actions taking place near the village of Khurhat, located near the city of Hadrut in the Republic of Artsakh on October 10, 2020, around 12:00 PM, based on personal interests of not risking his own life, has displayed inactivity of authority by failing to fulfill the obligations imposed on him by the Internal Service Regulations of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia and the Combat Regulations, which negligently caused serious consequences, namely that several servicemen of the 5th infantry battalion of the Defense Army of the Republic of Artsakh were killed, went missing, were captured, and sustained various degrees of physical injuries.

Moreover, Ishkhan Vahanian, by virtue of his official position and rank, voluntarily left the battlefield at the aforementioned combat position during the battle that took place on October 10, 2020, around 12:00 PM. Thus, Ishkhan Armen Vahanian received an order from the commander of the relevant unit of the Defense Army, Arthur Karamyan, on October 8, 2020, to transfer with the personnel of his subordinate battalion to the area near Hadrut city in the Republic of Artsakh and carry out the defense of the combat positions located there to prevent the enemy's advance. Based on this order, Ishkhan Vahanian, along with the assigned personnel, moved to the specified location on October 9 and stationed himself with the battalion's personnel, establishing defensive positions.

On October 10, 2020, around 12:00 PM, the enemy launched an attack on the stated positions, during which Ishkhan Vahanian, being the direct superior of the personnel of the 5th battalion of the Defense Army responsible for defending these combat positions, based on article 13, 73, 78, 85, 129, and 130 of the Internal Service Regulations of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Armenia, was obliged to be loyal to his military oath, selflessly serve his people, courageously and skillfully, without sparing his own blood and even life, to defend the homeland, fulfill his military duty, withstand the difficulties of military service unshaken, strictly adhere to the Constitution and laws of the Republic of Armenia, leave the performance of obligations to his deputy in the event of his absence, and be held accountable for the successful fulfillment of combat missions by the subdivision entrusted to him and the skillful leadership of the battalion, and according to articles 45-47 and 76 of the second part of the Combat Regulations, he was also obliged to organize the execution of the tasks assigned by the senior officer in accordance with the established deadlines, to lead the execution of the tasks received by the subordinate units, to be present in the most critical direction during decisive moments of battle, and to influence the battle in a timely manner using the forces and means at his disposal. In case of a sharp change in the situation, within the framework of the senior officer's overall design, he should accept new decisions and assign tasks to the subordinate units in accordance with the same regulations, and according to articles 119-122 and 179-180 of the second part of the Combat Regulations, in the case of bypassing the defense area, organize circular defense and continue to hold the occupied positions, and in the case of the need for forced retreat, organize the retreat of the subdivision in accordance with the procedures established by the regulations under the command or permission of the senior officer. Based on his personal interest in not risking his own life and safety above that of the servicemen under his command, disregarding the fact that the servicemen under his authority were newly recruited conscripts lacking sufficient combat skills, and failing to carry out actions aimed at ensuring the safety of the subordinate personnel and not leaving the battlefield, he did not fulfill the obligations set forth in the aforementioned legal acts and did not take any measures to ensure the implementation of the assigned tasks, but rather, using the significance of receiving a light injury from a blind fragmentary injury to the upper third of his right thigh during combat actions as an excuse, took the only means of communication provided for establishing stable contact with the higher command and left the battlefield of the aforementioned combat position without transferring the performance of obligations to any of the deputies, leaving the personnel without proper command and means of communication. After which, getting into a vehicle, he voluntarily left the battlefield.

The inactivity of authority displayed by Ishkhan Vahanian has negligently caused serious consequences, particularly since the personnel of the 5th battalion, being left without proper command and means of communication, fell into panic and attempted to protect themselves by whatever means and methods possible, but in the absence of organized combat operations and unified command, they were unable to succeed in that, under conditions where they had no opportunity to learn from the higher staff about the enemy's intrusion into the city of Hadrut, part of the battalion's personnel retreated in the direction of that city, among whom, among others, conscripts Tigran Aganessyan, Narek Ghazaryan, Harut Garakhanian, Suren Khechumyan, Erik Martirosyan, Artashes Ayvazyan, Hayk Harutyunyan, Sasun Petrosyan, Albert Stepanyan, Samvel Sambatov, Karen Nersesyan, Grisha Grigoryan, Davit Adoian, Artyom Mkrtchyan, Arman Gabrielyan, and Rafik Sahakyan were killed, several were captured by the enemy including Erik Gasparyan, Albert Grigoryan, Narek Sirunyan, Erik Khachatryan, Robert Vardanyan, Karen Manukyan, and Arayik Galstyan, while conscripts Arman Armaghanian, Arthur Harutyunyan, Nikolay Stepanyan, Davit Sahakyan, Arsen Ayvazyan, Ruslan Tumanian sustained injuries of varying degrees, and the whereabouts of conscript Arthur Aleksanyan remain unknown to this day.