Under What Circumstances and During What Mission Was Kandaz's Face Injured?

«Ժողովուրդ» օրաթերթը գրում է. «Արցախյան պատերազմիknown scout, known by the nickname Kandaz, Arthur Avanesyan has been in the Vardashen Penitentiary for over a week and announced a hunger strike, but yesterday, upon the advice of Samvel Karapetyan, he ended his hunger strike. According to official charges, Kandaz is involved in a vote-buying case, and he is using his hunger strike to protest against political persecution and injustice.

Who is Kandaz, and why is his face deformed? The newspaper has researched his biography and talked to his combat comrades. Arthur Avanesyan's story began in the village of Maghavuz in Martakert, where he dreamed of becoming a football player. He never thought about military service. In 1986, he moved from Maghavuz to Moscow to obtain sports education. However, the 1988 Artsakh Movement changed the course of his life; he left his sports education in Moscow and returned to Artsakh to participate in self-defense battles.

The 1992 events became one of the darkest pages in his biography. In 1992, when he entered an already occupied village, he found his grandmother on the balcony, with her throat cut. His grandmother was buried right in the yard of their home. “That scene stayed with me for my entire life. Blood has already filled my eyes… That’s where my intelligence life began,” Kandaz recounted on one occasion.

The name “Kandaz”—meaning headstrong, unyielding—was born on the summit of Karaghlukh. It has remained that way to this day. During the war years, Avanesyan also participated in perilous reconnaissance operations. According to his combat comrades, the severe injury to his face was sustained during an operation while hiding in enemy territory. Although the scout himself claimed that his face was bitten by a dog when he was young, it is apparent that the scar is not from childhood. He sustained this serious injury during a reconnaissance operation. According to reports to the newspaper, when Kandaz infiltrated the enemy front line with his group, they hid in the thickets for necessary protection. A wild boar attacked his face while they were under the bushes, but he did not make a sound to avoid endangering his and his comrades' lives. He returned to his unit bloodied, having completed the combat mission.

Today, Kandaz is in detention, in a completely different reality. According to wiretaps, he is convincing his compatriots to vote for a Strong Armenia, promising that everything will be fine for them.

Thus, Kandaz's story, which began under wartime circumstances, continues today in prison,” reports the newspaper. Details in the original source.