After the September attacks, paramilitary courses in Yerevan attract growing numbers, teaching weapons handling, combat tactics, first aid and survival skills to prepare civilians for what many see as an inevitable fight for their nation’s survival. Armenia, Yerevan, 07 December 2022.
Waiting For War
Since 2022 I traveled several times to Armenia — a democratic nation that for years has been forced to defend itself against its authoritarian neighbor, Azerbaijan.
In the Armenian spa town of Jermuk, tourists first thought the flashes and bangs on the night of September 13, 2022 were fireworks—until it became clear that Azerbaijan was attacking Armenian territory.
While guests and staff sheltered in basements, hundreds were killed along the border. Since then, life in the once-thriving wellness resort has changed: hotels have reopened, but tourists have not returned — and the town’s trust in the safety of its surrounding mountains has been shattered.
Armenia, 16 December 2022 — A woman makes a phone call in the waiting area of a roadside stop between the capital Yerevan and Jermuk, as an Armenian telenovela plays on the television.
Armenia, Jermuk, 03 December 2022 — Snow lingers on the ground as teenagers from the nearby village of Gndevaz pass the time drifting a rusty Lada near the Jermuk Spa Resort.
Viktoria Gregorian works as a teacher in Jermuk. She was born and raised in Baku, Azerbaijan, learned German in the Soviet Union and remembers a time when both peoples lived peacefully side by side. Armenia, Jermuk, 16 December 2022.
Armenia, Jermuk, 03 December 2022 — Utility pole and signpost to a restaurant in Jermuk.
A demonstrator is led away by police and detained for more than three hours. The protest in the capital Yerevan demands that Varuzhan Avetisyan, the imprisoned leader of the pro-Western National Democratic Movement, be transferred from prison to a civilian hospital. At the time, Avetisyan’s health condition is critical. Armenia, Yerevan, 06 December 2022.
In the town of Goris and the surrounding villages, people lived in natural mountain caves until the 1950s. Later they left them to build houses nearby but continued to use the caves for livestock, farming or as a cool refuge in summer. In September 2022, when Goris, Verishen and many other communities in the Syunik region were shelled by Azerbaijan, residents fled into the mountains. Now, like the family of Alina Minasyan and her 13-year-old son Hayk, they are converting the caves into bomb shelters and installing electricity and water to be prepared for another attack. Armenia, Goris, 12 December 2022.
Levon Arshakyan (25, center) and his friends meet once a month to grill together in the evening and toast to life with homemade mulberry vodka. Armenia, Goris, 11 December 2022.
Helping people with leg amputations lead fulfilling lives — that is the goal of the Armenia-based NGO Oqni, whose name in Armenian means “Help!”. Armenia, Yerevan, 01 December 2022.
Candles and prayer: soldiers during the service at St. Gayane Church in Jermuk. 04 December 2022.
Kristina Ivanian (38), manager of the Olympia Sanatorium and Jermuk Spa Resort, picks local hawthorn berries. Armenia, Jermuk, 03 December 2022:
On the night of September 13, Kristina Ivanian cared for her guests in shelters and organized evacuations from the city. Two years earlier, she had volunteered during the 44-day war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Guests of the Jermuk Spa Resort enjoy the calm during Kneipp therapy. On the night of the attack, hotel manager Kristina Ivanian and her staff sheltered their surprised guests in the treatment rooms. Massage chairs and sofas were quickly turned into makeshift beds while loud rumbling echoed from the mountains and bright flashes lit up the forests. Armenia, Jermuk, 04 December 2022.
Nature has made Jermuk famous far beyond Armenia’s borders. Natural mineral springs emerge all around the town. Armenia, Jermuk, 04 December 2022.
Armenia, Yerevan, 26 November 2022: Many Armenians remain angry with their President Nikol Pashinyan, who agreed to the terms of the Russia-brokered ceasefire in 2020
Armenia, Jermuk, 04.12.22
That afternoon, a handful of teenagers gather around computer screens and a projector at the "Dolphins youth center" while English pop music plays from the speakers. Armenia, Jermuk, 09.12.22
Arman Aretunyan (44) is a farmer and father of three from the village of Verishen near Goris. During the September attacks, his family took shelter in one of the mountain caves on the edge of the village. Armenia, Verishen, 12 December 2022.
After the September attacks, paramilitary courses in Yerevan attract growing numbers, teaching weapons handling, combat tactics, first aid and survival skills to prepare civilians for what many see as an inevitable fight for their nation’s survival. Armenia, Yerevan, 07 December 2022.
Waiting For War
Since 2022 I traveled several times to Armenia — a democratic nation that for years has been forced to defend itself against its authoritarian neighbor, Azerbaijan.
In the Armenian spa town of Jermuk, tourists first thought the flashes and bangs on the night of September 13, 2022 were fireworks—until it became clear that Azerbaijan was attacking Armenian territory.
While guests and staff sheltered in basements, hundreds were killed along the border. Since then, life in the once-thriving wellness resort has changed: hotels have reopened, but tourists have not returned — and the town’s trust in the safety of its surrounding mountains has been shattered.
Armenia, 16 December 2022 — A woman makes a phone call in the waiting area of a roadside stop between the capital Yerevan and Jermuk, as an Armenian telenovela plays on the television.
Armenia, Jermuk, 03 December 2022 — Snow lingers on the ground as teenagers from the nearby village of Gndevaz pass the time drifting a rusty Lada near the Jermuk Spa Resort.
Viktoria Gregorian works as a teacher in Jermuk. She was born and raised in Baku, Azerbaijan, learned German in the Soviet Union and remembers a time when both peoples lived peacefully side by side. Armenia, Jermuk, 16 December 2022.
Armenia, Jermuk, 03 December 2022 — Utility pole and signpost to a restaurant in Jermuk.
A demonstrator is led away by police and detained for more than three hours. The protest in the capital Yerevan demands that Varuzhan Avetisyan, the imprisoned leader of the pro-Western National Democratic Movement, be transferred from prison to a civilian hospital. At the time, Avetisyan’s health condition is critical. Armenia, Yerevan, 06 December 2022.
In the town of Goris and the surrounding villages, people lived in natural mountain caves until the 1950s. Later they left them to build houses nearby but continued to use the caves for livestock, farming or as a cool refuge in summer. In September 2022, when Goris, Verishen and many other communities in the Syunik region were shelled by Azerbaijan, residents fled into the mountains. Now, like the family of Alina Minasyan and her 13-year-old son Hayk, they are converting the caves into bomb shelters and installing electricity and water to be prepared for another attack. Armenia, Goris, 12 December 2022.
Levon Arshakyan (25, center) and his friends meet once a month to grill together in the evening and toast to life with homemade mulberry vodka. Armenia, Goris, 11 December 2022.
Helping people with leg amputations lead fulfilling lives — that is the goal of the Armenia-based NGO Oqni, whose name in Armenian means “Help!”. Armenia, Yerevan, 01 December 2022.
Candles and prayer: soldiers during the service at St. Gayane Church in Jermuk. 04 December 2022.
Kristina Ivanian (38), manager of the Olympia Sanatorium and Jermuk Spa Resort, picks local hawthorn berries. Armenia, Jermuk, 03 December 2022:
On the night of September 13, Kristina Ivanian cared for her guests in shelters and organized evacuations from the city. Two years earlier, she had volunteered during the 44-day war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Guests of the Jermuk Spa Resort enjoy the calm during Kneipp therapy. On the night of the attack, hotel manager Kristina Ivanian and her staff sheltered their surprised guests in the treatment rooms. Massage chairs and sofas were quickly turned into makeshift beds while loud rumbling echoed from the mountains and bright flashes lit up the forests. Armenia, Jermuk, 04 December 2022.
Nature has made Jermuk famous far beyond Armenia’s borders. Natural mineral springs emerge all around the town. Armenia, Jermuk, 04 December 2022.
Armenia, Yerevan, 26 November 2022: Many Armenians remain angry with their President Nikol Pashinyan, who agreed to the terms of the Russia-brokered ceasefire in 2020
Armenia, Jermuk, 04.12.22
That afternoon, a handful of teenagers gather around computer screens and a projector at the "Dolphins youth center" while English pop music plays from the speakers. Armenia, Jermuk, 09.12.22
Arman Aretunyan (44) is a farmer and father of three from the village of Verishen near Goris. During the September attacks, his family took shelter in one of the mountain caves on the edge of the village. Armenia, Verishen, 12 December 2022.