Secret Order of the 11th Red Army on the Elimination of Nzhdeh’s Detachments

Below is the secret order of the command of the 28th division of the 11th Red Army concerning the elimination of the armed units of Nzhdeh.

“The gangs of Nzhdeh thanks to the propaganda of their agents mobilized the entire population of the Qatar region (Iran) and commenced a counter-revolutionary uprising. The uprising involved the village of Artsevanik-Barabutum, Gavart-Qatar, Kamihana-Bikh, and Barabudj-Vyachekan. The uprising may have spread to other villages in the area.

In the area of Ordubad, the groups Nzhdeh are resisting stubbornly. To eliminate the gangs and the insurgent population in the Qatar region, as well as Nzhdeh’s resisting gangs in the Ordubad region, the 11th Red Army entrusted me with the mission to finally crush the rebel population and in a short time eliminate the Nzhdeh gang.

Thus, I order commander of the 83rd Brigade Litvinenko:

On October 12, transfer the 247th regiment from Shushi to Zoiva and capture Zoiva. On October 17, seize Artsevanik and, coordinating with the 250th regiment which is approaching Qatar from Gerus, suppress the uprising in the whole area with the most decisive actions. Resort to the most extreme measures to finally eliminate the attempts of gangs and the population to revolt.

Shoot those responsible. The 248th and 249th regiments should remain in place to carry out the tasks assigned to them.

Commander of the 84th brigade Semenov:

With joint actions of the 250th regiment moving from Engelyurt to Qatar through Gerus and the 247th regiment, eliminate the Nzhdeh gang that had raised a counter-revolutionary uprising, forcing them into a dead end. During the attack, choose the correct location in order to inflict significant losses on the enemy without losing our fighters.

Approaching the insurgent regions, the 247th regiment must through intelligence find out the positions of the rebels and their strength. Then, jointly attack and eliminate them. After the end of the operation, the 250th regiment must move in the direction of Nuvada to proceed with the elimination of gangs in accordance with order No. 27.

After the end of the operation, the 247th regiment must remain in the Qatar district and clear the area from counter-revolutionary elements. The remaining military units operating on the Nuvada-Ordubad line must carry out the tasks assigned to them earlier.”

David Fidanyan