Twenty-three year old Armenian mother in Artsakh, Ani, recently opened up about the loss of her unborn child during the sixth month of her pregnancy. 

During the miscarriage, Ani had difficulty getting through when calling an ambulance. Finally, at 2:00 AM, Ani, in an ambulance, was headed to Stepanakert. But the two hour journey to the region's capital proved to be too long to save her pregnancy. 

Ani was choked up when recalling the incident in an interview with Media Hub. She explained, "I couldn't get through an ambulance. It was 2am. I somehow got to the hospital. I was six months pregnant... we couldn't save my child."

Ani’s miscarriage is not an anomaly. The Artsakh blockade has had direct consequences on pregnant women in Artsakh, with reports that miscarriages have tripled in Artsakh within the past month. OC Media reported that in an interview with Armenian Public TV on Thursday (July 20th) the State Minister of Nagorno-Karabakh, Gurgen Nersisyan said, “over 90% of pregnant women have anemia.” 

There is a growing number of Armenian women who are unable to carry their pregnancy to term as Azerbaijan's blockade cuts off Artsakh from receiving supplies from Armenia. OC Media points out that before December 2022, Nagorno-Karabakh received over 90% of its supplies from Armenia. 

Today, pregnant women don’t have access to proper nutrition, medicine, and healthcare needed for a healthy pregnancy. 

Artsakh has been under a blockade for over 200 days. With a depleting supply of  food, water, gas, and medicine, scarcity in basic human needs is on the rise for the 120,000 residents of Artsakh. 

Ani urges us in her interview with Media Hub, "Do not be silent, do everything so that unborn children do not die under the hearts of mothers, do not be silent."

As the humanitarian crisis becomes more severe with empty grocery stores, empty pharmacies, a decreasing water supply, and gas shortages, national media pays minimal attention to shedding light on Azerbaijan's continuous defiance to lift the blockade.