AYF’s ‘With Our Soldiers’ Campaign Offers Support to the Family of the Slain Hero

Armenian Youth Federation’s ‘With Our Soldiers’ task force members are shocked and saddened by the news of Hrach Muradian’s murder in Proshyan village in Armenia on April 2nd. A long-time ARF activist and Artsakh War veteran, Unger Hrach was a true patriot, whose contributions to both the national liberation struggle and the state-building efforts after the war have been invaluable.

Having served as the head of Proshyan village in the Kotayk Province since 2005, Hrach Muradian played an important role in assisting the AYF with the organization of its summer ‘Youth Corps’ program in that region. One of the three camps that the program runs every summer for kids from low-income families has been based in Proshyan for the past three years.

‘Through both our cooperation on the Youth Corps program and the daily encounters with Unger Hrach during our summer camp, we had come to appreciate his commitment, modesty, and determination to help us in every way possible to ensure the success of our initiative,’ says Caspar Jivalagian, a former Youth Corps team leader and a member of the WOS task force.

Hrach Muradian’s military path included service alongside the legendary commander Petros Ghevondyan and participation in a number of important battles. He was awarded the Military Cross and several medals for his service to his country and heroism on the battlefield in Artsakh.

“On behalf of the ‘With Our Soldiers’ campaign, we express our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Hrach Muradian,” adds Tro Krikorian, a community activist and a member of the WOS task force. “This murder is a big loss for our country, and we call for a thorough investigation of this crime and a just punishment of those responsible.”

The ‘With Our Soldiers’ task force made a decision to allocate funds from the campaign budget to assist the Muradian family in these difficult times. Though no amount of money can relieve the grief of the family, the task force believes that it is important to show support for those who have sacrificed so much for our country and for Artsakh’s freedom.

“This murder is a result of the atmosphere of lawlessness that has been created by the ruling elite in Armenia and that is destroying our country from inside. Once again, our citizens are witnessing the same old tactics being used to instill fear and trepidation in those who have defeated our external enemies and never succumbed to the pressures of the internal foes,” stated the chairman of the With Our Soldiers task force, David Arakelyan.

Founded in 1933, the Armenian Youth Federation is the largest and most influential Armenian American youth organization in the United States, working to advance the social, political, educational and cultural awareness of Armenian-American youth.