Aram Yerganian (; 20 May 1900 – 2 August 1934) was an Armenian revolutionary who was noted for his assassination of Behaeddin Sakir and Fatali Khan Khoyski as an act of vengeance for their roles in the

Armenian genocide The Armenian genocide was the systematic destruction of the Armenians, Armenian people and identity in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. Spearheaded by the ruling Committee of Union and Progress (CUP), it was implemented primarily t ...

and the massacre of Armenians in Baku respectively. He is considered an Armenian national hero.

Early life

Aram Yerganian was born in

Erzurum Erzurum (; ) is a List of cities in Turkey, city in eastern Anatolia, Turkey. It is the largest city and capital of Erzurum Province and is 1,900 meters (6,233 feet) above sea level. Erzurum had a population of 367,250 in 2010. It is the site of an ...

on 20 May 1900. He was the third child of Sarkis Yerganian and Mariam Soghoyan-Yerganian. He attended a local school in Erzurum. Yerganian, who witnessed the Armenian genocide, sought refuge in the

Caucasus The Caucasus () or Caucasia (), is a region spanning Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is situated between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea, comprising parts of Southern Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan. The Caucasus Mountains, i ...

. In 1917 he enlisted for the Armenian volunteer detachments and fought for General Dro in the Battle of Bash Abaran. After the victory over the Ottoman forces and the establishment of the

Democratic Republic of Armenia The First Republic of Armenia, officially known at the time of its existence as the Republic of Armenia, was an independent Armenian state that existed from May (28th ''de jure'', 30th ''de facto'') 1918 to 2 December 1920 in the Armenian-popula ...

in 1918, Yerganian enlisted in

Operation Nemesis Operation Nemesis () was a program of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation to assassinate both Ottoman Empire, Ottoman perpetrators of the Armenian genocide and officials of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic most responsible for the massacre o ...

, the covert operation led by a special body of the

Armenian Revolutionary Federation The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (, abbr. ARF (ՀՅԴ) or ARF-D), also known as Dashnaktsutyun (Armenians, Armenian: Դաշնակցություն, Literal translation, lit. "Federation"), is an Armenian nationalism, Armenian nationalist a ...

aimed at assassinating all key organizers of massacres against Armenians both in the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

and in

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

Operation Nemesis

After

Armenia Armenia, officially the Republic of Armenia, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of West Asia. It is a part of the Caucasus region and is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia (country), Georgia to the north and Azerbaijan to ...

lost its independence to the Bolsheviks, Yerganian went to

Tbilisi Tbilisi ( ; ka, თბილისი, ), in some languages still known by its pre-1936 name Tiflis ( ), ( ka, ტფილისი, tr ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Georgia (country), largest city of Georgia ( ...

where he and Misak Grigorian were assigned to assassinate former Prime Minister of the

Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (), also known as the Azerbaijan People's Republic (; ), was the first secular democratic republic in the Turkic and Muslim worlds. *Tadeusz Swietochowski. ''Russia and Azerbaijan: A Borderland in Transitio ...

Fatali Khan Khoyski and leader of the

Musavat The Müsavat Party (, from ''musāwāt'', ) is the oldest existing political party in Azerbaijan. Its history can be divided into three periods: Early Musavat, Musavat-in-exile and New Musavat. The party was prohibited from contesting the 1995 ...

party Khan Mahmadov. On 19 June 1920, they met at Tbilisi's Yerevan Square as they awaited a signal from their accomplices. When Khoiski and Mahmadov were 100 to 150 meters away, they immediately opened fire on them. Khoiski was killed instantly, but Mahmadov, who was only wounded, escaped. After his task in Tbilisi was finished, Yerganian went to

Istanbul Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...

where he attempted to recruit more avengers for the operation. Yerganian and

Arshavir Shirakian Arshavir Shirakian (also Shiragian, ; January 1, 1902 or 1900 – April 12, 1973) was an Armenian writer and assassin who was noted for his assassination of Said Halim Pasha and Cemal Azmi as an act of vengeance for their roles in the Armenian ge ...

were later given the task to assassinate both

Cemal Azmi Cemal Azmi (1868 – April 17, 1922), also spelled Jemal Azmi, was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman Turkish people, Turkish politician and governor of the Trebizond Vilayet, Trebizond (now Trabzon) Vilayet (province) during World War I and the fina ...

and Behaeddin Sakir who were in

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. On 17 April 1922, Shirakian and Yerganian encountered Azmi and Sakir who were walking with their families on . Shirakian managed to kill only Azmi and wound Sakir. Yerganian immediately ran after Sakir and killed him with a shot to his head.

Later life

After his action in Germany, Yerganian went to Austria and then to

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

, where he lived until he moved to

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

in 1927. In Buenos Aires Yerganian became an editor for the local "Armenia" newspaper. In 1931 he married Zabel Paragyan and had one daughter. After contracting

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

, Yerganian moved to the province of Cordoba where he died on 2 August 1934, at the age of 34.Houshamadian of Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutiun Album – Atlas Volume 2, Jacob Manjikian Editor, Next Day Color Printing Inc. (2000), p. 215 He is buried at the ARF Antranig Club in the city of Cordoba.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yerganian, Aram 1900 births 1934 deaths Armenian assassins People from Erzurum Witnesses of the Armenian genocide Armenians from the Ottoman Empire Tuberculosis deaths in Argentina Soviet emigrants to Romania Romanian emigrants to Argentina Emigrants from the Ottoman Empire to Argentina Armenian emigrants to Argentina 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis