Thousands of mourners attended in Gyumri yesterday at the funeral of the baby six months died of his injuries a week after the brutal attack that killed six members of his family.

Silently, the crowd walked behind the body Seryozha Avetisyan while being transported to the church of Surp Nshan to a cemetery in the second largest city of Armenia, still reeling from the massacre of January 12, attributed to a Russian soldier.

Christian priests sang songs for the child while he was buried next to his family. Hundreds of people threw handfuls of sand on his grave at the end of the ceremony in the presence of Armenian MPs and local government leaders.

Serzh Sargsyan did not attend the funeral. He had already been conspicuously absent when the six other members of the family were buried Avetisian on 15 January.

Thursday, January 22, 2015,
Claire © armenews.co

Hundreds of Russian and Armenian soldiers marched in Gyumri Friday in a joint parade which marked the 69th anniversary of the Soviet victory in the Second World War.

An Armenian general commanding the troops on this occasion, given to publicly congratulate the Armenian army for the 22th anniversary of a key victory in the war in Nagorno-Karabakh.

“Congratulations on the 69th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War and the liberation of Shushi,” he told a meet Armenian troops lined up on the central square of Gyumri.

The parade was watched by thousands of local residents. Including a scroll armored vehicles and artillery systems belonging to Russian and Armenian armed forces.

A smaller number of Armenian and Russian soldiers marched to war memorial in Yerevan Victory Park after the Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamian and other senior Armenian officials laid flowers. Thousands of people, including many veterans with gray hair wearing their war medals, visited the memorial throughout the day.

At least 320,000 Armenians were in the Soviet army during the bloodiest war in the history of mankind. Only a little more than half of them returned home alive.

Serzh Sargsyan paid tribute to their contribution to the Soviet victory in a statement released on the occasion. “During World War II, hundreds of thousands of Armenians fought in the trenches for justice and freedom,” he said.

Sargsyan also noted the anniversary of the Karabakh military operation, which proved crucial in the outcome of the war against Azerbaijan. “On 9 May 1992, we were back in the trenches for justice and freedom, the struggle against national discrimination and genocide,” he said.

Incidentally, Sargsyan was in Karabakh Friday to take part in official ceremonies celebrating the day of victory.

Gyumri Thousands attend funeral of murdered baby

Gyumri The parade of Armenian and Russian troops for the Victory Day