Aren Melikyan

2 Posts

0 Followers

Aren is a journalist and podcast producer based in Tbilisi. Passionate about storytelling and documentaries, his work has appeared in several prominent regional and international media outlets.

Manan in Dusseldorf. She hides her face as many in her hometown do not know the reason she is in Germany. Photo: Aren Melikyan/OC Media.

Armenia

Seeking asylum and a cure in Germany

by Aren Melikyan

•7 min read

Many Armenian citizens with debilitating and life-threatening health problems that they cannot afford to treat in their homeland look to Germany as their last chance for treatment and recovery — despite the high chance of deportation. The small public square in front of Dusseldorf’s main train station evokes feelings of nostalgia for the 42-year-old Armenian woman standing in front of it. Inga can’t help but compare everything she sees with her hometown of Gyumri, a city in the north of Armen

The cellar where Tetiana, Iryna, and their family sheltered from airstrikes. Photo: Tetiana Rovna.

Feature Stories

Distance from a home at war

by Aren Melikyan

•6 min read

Tetiana Rovna escaped Bucha as Russian troops were advancing towards the Kyiv suburb. She told OC Media about her flight from Ukraine and what it has been like to witness her home ravaged by war from afar. An air raid warning interrupts my quiet conversation with Tetiana Rovna as her phone receives a notification about incoming Russian airstrikes on the town of Kropyvnytskyi. An app created by the Ukrainian government urges her to quickly go to the nearest bomb shelter. She does not need to h

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