39-year-old Hasmik Poghosyan last saw his son Narek Badalyan on February 7, 2020, during the swearing-in ceremony at the Gyumri military unit. After several months of service here, the only way for the mother to see her son in Artsakh was a video call. And during the 42 days of the Artsakh war, which started on September 27, 2020, they talked on the phone for a few seconds.
On the 42nd day of the war, on November 7, in the fierce battles of Shushi, when it was already known that the enemy in large numbers was advancing and there was no chance of escape, Narek chose the famous hero’s way of not surrendering, shooting himself with a handgun in order not to be captured.
“On November 7, around 4 o’clock, he calls his cousin and says: there is no hope of me coming back; don’t wait for me, our end has already come: the Turks are in front of us, and the Turks are behind us. He said: I love you, you are in my heart, don’t wait for me. And he sealed his immortality with his own hand so that he would not be captured. Just five minutes after hanging up, the cousin called Narek, but Narek didn’t answer anymore,” says the mother.
When talking about her son, the mother remembers the stories of Narek’s comrades in arms: “His spirit was high, he followed orders exactly, he was not afraid, he shot down three tanks.”
However, these stories are not important for the young mother, the only thing she shishes is to have her son by her side. “I always told him, I said: Dear Narek, don’t suddenly do heroic things, think that you have mom, dad, sister, brothers here, and we are waiting for you.”
Hasmik Hambardzumyan