‘I’m not afraid of death…I’m only afraid of missing home,’ says Nagorno-Karabakh cancer patient amid blockade

YEREVAN, AUGUST 5, ARMENPRESS. Euronews has interviewed a cancer patient from Nagorno-Karabakh who is being treated in Yerevan amid the ongoing blockade of Lachin Corridor by Azerbaijan.

Resident of Stepanakert city Vachik Babajanyan told Euronews that he was evacuated to Armenia by the International Committee of the Red Cross back when there was little Azeri control in the Lachin Corridor.

“I don’t think about my illness, I’ll heal or not. I’m not afraid of death. I nearly died in previous wars. God saved me. I’m only afraid of missing home. I can’t bear missing home. I miss the birds and their songs. You can’t find these birds here,” Babajanyan told Euronews.

“Missing home strangles me. It’s very hard. I have lots of pain all day. But I don’t care. But each time there’s a shooting or ceasefire violation I’m scared that they’ll attack and at this moment I’m not there by their side,” he continued.

Babajanyan said that he maintains constant contact with his family.

“I ask them to show me our garden. It’s the first time my wife takes care of the garden. I was the one doing that,” he said.

Commenting on the Euronews report, Armenian foreign ministry spokesperson Ani Badalyan wrote on X, “Illegal closing of Lachin Corridor & inhuman blockade of Nagorno Karabakh by Azerbaijan is causing irreversible harm to NK people. And behind it there are 120K real human stories like this, each of them suffering from pain to be deprived of homeland, family, from what they love.”

Illegal closing of #LachinCorridor &inhuman blockade of #NagornoKarabakh by Azerbaijan is causing irreversible harm to NK people.

And behind it there are 120K real human stories like this, each of them suffering from pain to be deprived of homeland, family, from what they love. https://t.co/B54qbJ7xkr

— Ani Badalyan, Spokesperson of MFA of Armenia (@ArmSpoxMFA) August 5, 2023