Fallen Armenian hero's family welcomes baby girl

A baby girl has been born into the family of an Armenian soldier killed in the 2020 Artsakh war.

The child, named Hasmik, is the ninth in a large family from Armenia’s Armavir Province. She was delivered by caesarean section at Armavir Medical Center, weighing 4kg and measuring 51cm. Her name honours fallen Sergeant Hasmik Arzumanyan and is intended to embody strength, struggle and enduring light.

Her mother, who lost her only son, 18-year-old Zhirair Margaryan, in the war, described the birth as a source of hope amid sorrow. “You were born to bring light into my darkened life,” she wrote, pledging to raise her daughter with a spirit of justice and resilience.

Zhirair Margaryan had been serving for just two months when fighting broke out in September 2020. He last spoke to his family on the first day of the war and his body was recovered nine months later.

Armavir Governor Vahram Khachatryan visited the hospital to congratulate the mother, calling the birth “a symbol of life’s continuity and of faith in the future for the entire nation.”