Karabakh army: friday night quelled Azerbaijan “activeness”

December 3, 2016 By administrator

karabakh-quelled STEPANAKERT. – The adversary violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between the Karabakh and Azerbaijani opposing forces about 90 times, from late Friday night to early Saturday morning.

During this time the Azerbaijani armed forces fired more than 1,000 shots toward the Armenian position-holders, and by way of various caliber weapons, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR/Artsakh) Defense Army informed Armenian News-NEWS.am.

More intense violations were recorded by sniper weapons (about 80 shots). In addition, the adversary fired one shell from a mortar, in an easterly direction of the line of contact.

But the NKR Defense Army vanguard units took necessary measures to quell the “activeness” by the Azerbaijan armed forces, and confidently defended their frontline.

Situation at the line of contact is calm, at this time.

Greece: Cyprus: Athens excludes settlement without withdrawal of Turkish troops

December 2, 2016 By administrator

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias

Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias reaffirmed that a settlement in Cyprus was conditional on the withdrawal of Turkish troops stationed on the island, whose leaders are trying to revive dialogue for reunification.

Any agreement to end the division of the island must include a “clause” providing for the departure of Turkish troops, said the minister on the Greek radio Alpha. He stressed that Athens did not require an “overnight” withdrawal, but within an “adequate” timeframe. He noted by way of example that the withdrawal of Soviet troops during the German reunification took “four years”.

Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades and Turkish-Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci are currently seeking to revive their dialogue after their failure to reach an agreement during ten days of negotiations in Switzerland under the aegis of the UN.

Greece, Mr Kotzias said, did not intervene in these inter-communal negotiations, which particularly affected the territorial division between the two entities. But it has a voice on the issue of the security of the island because of the regime in force since its independence granting a right of intervention to three “guaranteeing powers”, Britain as former colonial power , Greece and Turkey.

According to Kotzias, London agrees with Greece on the need to end the guarantor regime, judged “anachronistic” by Athens.

To clear the way for a settlement on this chapter, which must be submitted to a multilateral agreement, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras proposed this week a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

No date has so far been fixed but Greece remains asking for such an appointment, Kotzias said. However, he said that since the failed coup d’état of 15 July, the Erdogan regime no longer demonstrates the “willingness to compromise” on Cyprus.

Cyprus has been divided since the invasion in 1974 by the Turkish army in the northern part of the island in reaction to a coup aimed at linking the country to Greece.

Friday, December 2, 2016,
Stéphane © armenews.com

Kurdish PKK Fighters neutralized 3 Turkish soldiers 6 were wounded in clashes eastern Turkey

December 2, 2016 By administrator

3-soldiers-nutralized Three soldiers were killed and six were wounded in an operation against Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants in the eastern province of Hakkari early on Dec. 2, Doğan News Agency has reported.

One of the killed soldiers, private Servet Tomak, had lost his father and was living with his mother in the Marmara province of Bursa. One of the other soldiers, contracted private Özgür Mutlu, was from the Central Anatolian province of Kırıkkale.

Security sources said the casualties came from a clash in the Çukurca district of Hakkari between Turkish security forces and PKK militants in the Mount Güven area, close to Turkey’s border with Iraq.

The clashes began at 06.40 am in the Güven Dağı Base zone after a PKK militant tried to infiltrate into the facility during heavy snow and foggy weather conditions.

Howitzers positioned in the area started to fire on the militants, and as militants under the offensive started to retreat, Turkish Air Force jets struck the targets, killing seven militants and heavily wounding nine others.

The nine injured were left at the scene after the attack, as security forces obtained the radio talk of fleeing militants who were instructed to leave the wounded by taking their weapons.

Separately, four militants were “neutralized” after Turkey fired artillery rounds into Hakurk, northern Iraq, from the Şemdinli district of Hakkari.

PPK Leader Bayık: Kurds have reached the stage of freedom, need to sever all ties with the Turkish state.

December 2, 2016 By administrator

KCK Executive Council Co-President Cemil Bayık

KCK’s Cemil Bayık remarked that Kurds have reached the stage of freedom, and called on the Kurdish people to sever all their ties with the system of the Turkish state.

NEWS DESK – ANF

KCK Executive Council Co-President Cemil Bayık evaluated the recent developments for Rojeva Welat program on Stêrk TV.

Bayık firstly commemorated Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro who -he said- was an influential leader alongside Che Guevara in the eyes of the Kurdish people.

Bayık also remembered Amed Bar Association President and human rights defender Tahir Elçi who was murdered on November 28, 2015, since when the Turkish state continues its attacks on the Kurdish population. According to Bayık, Tahir Elçi was murdered deliberately with the goal of silencing bar associations, preventing the emergence of truths and starting a dirty war in the Kurdish region.

Commenting on the decision of two courts in Germany and Belgium that did not define the PKK as a “terrorist organization”, Bayık recalled that the Kurdish people never waged a struggle against Europe.

Calling attention to the PKK’s struggle in Shengal and Rojava, Bayık continued as follows: “PKK is a movement waging a freedom struggle. Peoples in Europe are also supporting the PKK’s struggle and the Kurdish people, which has also influenced the European community and courts. European states will understand this reality better in time.”

Bayık also mentioned the European Parliament’s decision to freeze negotiations with Turkey, saying: “The European Union has some values and standards that it needs to protect for these are trampled on by the Turkish state. The EU has long remained silent on the AKP-MHP politics but this has reached such a level that they couldn’t stay silent anymore. If this silence continued, peoples in Europe wouldn’t accept this.” He underlined that the European Union and NATO shouldn’t be deceived by Turkey’s blackmail over refugees.

Bayık continued, commenting on the deepening political and economic crisis in Turkey:

“AKP is pretending to be strong but it is not. The AKP government is advancing fascism in Turkey together with the MHP. The problems caused by this truth are huge and they will get even deeper.

Conflicts have started to erupt within the AKP and this politics will not lead Turkey to success. If they insist on this politics, Turkey will enter a more dangerous process and even end up like the Ottoman Empire.”

Referring to the Kurdish movement’s call for mobilization against attacks, Bayık said balances in the Middle East haven’t been established yet, and that Kurds have a right more than everyone else in these new balances to be formed.

Bayık remarked that Kurds will take their place in the balance within the new sharing battle, stressing that the AKP regime made interventions everywhere in the face of this situation.

“Kurdish organizations should all come together urgently and discuss what kind of a unity and congress they will realize. If they do this, dangers will decrease and their opportunity to triumph will be stronger than dangers themselves.”

Bayık also spoke about the Turkish state’s insistent attacks on Bab, saying the followings:

“Their target is not the ISIS but democratic forces, the basic force of which is the Kurds. They are trying to neutralize Kurds and hinder the advancement of democracy. Turkey shows up wherever ISIS faces a danger. Turkey is assisting the ISIS and if ISIS is annihilated, Turkey will not be able to wage a war against forces of democracy and defenders of freedom in the same way it is doing at the moment.”

Bayık continued, commenting on the AKP-MHP alliance over the new constitution, saying:

“MHP represents nationalism and AKP purportedly represents religion. These two parties came together and united nationalism and religion, which has also formed the basis of fascism. They want to make a new constitution on this basis and to make fascism permanent. Such a goal requires a war against democratic forces and they are mainly targeting the leading force of these democratic circles, which is the Kurds that are leading and representing democracy.”

Bayık pointed out that the people of Southern Kurdistan should also stand against Turkish colonialism and occupation attempts.

Bayık also congratulated Donald Trump who won the election and became the President of the U.S., adding that they hope Trump will pursue a policy in favour of his people and humanity as the U.S. policies influence the entire world, including the Kurdistan territory.

“There is a big war ongoing in the Middle East today amid ongoing changes and formation of new balances. The U.S., Russia and other forces are all involved in this battle. We are a part of the Middle East and Kurdistan is the backbone of the Middle East. Every policy on the Middle East has an influence on Kurds and the PKK. The politics of the PKK does also influence the entire Kurdistan and Middle East territory.

We hope the U.S. will take the Kurds into consideration in its Middle East politics. I believe the U.S. will see the injustice, atrocity and genocidal policy against Kurds and the struggle of Kurds against this aggression. They will get closer towards the Kurds and the PKK.”

KCK Executive Council Co-President Cemil Bayık ended his words with the following message:

“Our people should know that we have reached the stage of freedom, which is why the war is being waged this much violent. Our people should not live with the Turkish state anymore and they should sever all their ties with this system. If they do this, this system will collapse and the society of Turkey will attain peace even sooner.”

“Unfortunately, I do not know an “Aurora” pretender Turkish figure.” Arman Jilavyan

December 2, 2016 By administrator

aurora-turkish-figure “As a teammate, I would be happy and proud if we have such news and if one day, a Turkish citizen or an ethnic Turkish figure will be able to go up on the stage in Armenia who truly will be honored to receive this award, willingly or unwillingly recognizing the Armenian Genocide and will be worthy of this award,” said Aurora Prize project CEO Arman Jilavyan in an interview with Aravot.am, interpreting the opinion of businessman Ruben Vardanyan, one of the founders of “Aurora” humanitarian initiative, that “we would be happy if one day a Turk received an “Aurora” award. We inquired to know whether there is such a figure.

“Unfortunately, I personally do not know such a Turkish figure but I hope there is one. We do not nominate the candidates, the nomination is open,” replied Arman Jilavyan. He also informed that recently they have hosted Turkish journalists. Arman Jilavyan has not expressed a desire that the latter would write an article about the Armenian Genocide because they will appear in the jail. Jilavyan mentioned that Turkish journalists were told about the Armenian Genocide and necessary materials were presented. The reactions as Arman Jilavyan said, “They were weeping.”

Armenia Europe’s most militarized country for fourth year in a row

December 2, 2016 By administrator

Armenia is the most militarized country in Europe for a fourth consecutive year, also topping the worldwide list with Israel and Singapore, a new report showed.

The Global Militarization Index presents on an annual basis the relative weight and importance of a country’s military apparatus in relation to its society as a whole. It compares, for example, military expenditures with a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) and its health expenditure (as share of its GDP). The GMI 2016 covers 152 states and is based on the latest available figures (in most cases data for 2015). The index project is financially supported by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).

Despite the fact that no other country spends as much money on its military as the United States does (2015: US $595 billion), it is only on position 31 of the GMI.

“In the context with the GDP or the overall population, the high military expenditures and the large number of military personnel in the United States are put in perspective as regards the ranking,” the author Dr Max M. Mutschler said. This explains conversely, why for years small countries such as Armenia, Singapore or Cyprus are to be found in the world’s top 10 in the GMI.

Russia, Cyprus, Greece and Azerbaijan are also among the top 10 worldwide in the report.

Related links:

Global Militarization Index 2016

EU’s €7 mln financial aid to support electoral reform in Armenia

December 2, 2016 By administrator

eu-support-electrol The European Union has decided to allocate a financial support of up to €7 million to help implement the electoral reform agreement in Armenia, the EU said in a statement.

“Following the important first steps in the implementation of the agreement on electoral reform between the coalition and the opposition parties, drawing on consultations with civil society representatives, we count on the government to spare no efforts in realising this reform. We appreciate the commitment of the authorities to allow a fair and open competition. We expect the Central Election Commission, the law enforcement bodies and the judiciary to do their best to fulfil this promise. We perceive the presence of political will as a key prerequisite for a fair electoral process,” the statement said.

“In partnership with the UNDP and the United States, the European Union has responded positively to the government’s request for assistance in funding implementation of this electoral reform package. EU financial support of up to €7 million will close the identified financial gap and will thus allow for the smooth implementation of the electoral reform agreement. This includes support to election observation. Together with the contributions of Germany and the United Kingdom, European support amounts to 90 percent of the overall financial assistance to the electoral process.”

“The European Union attaches great importance to the transparency, integrity, inclusiveness and effectiveness of electoral processes. Therefore, we will continue to support the efforts of all stakeholders to ensure full alignment with international standards, including those related to the prohibition of the use of administrative resources and electoral corruption and to ensuring unhindered work by observers and media.

“Ensuring free and fair future elections will be crucial for Armenian democracy and for the country’s relations with the European Union. We stand ready to continue to support Armenia on its democratic path based on the future EU-Armenia Agreement and within the larger framework of the Eastern Partnership.”

Only one man Erdogan fear is Putin, backtracks on Syria Assad removal after calling with Putin,

December 1, 2016 By administrator

Turkey’s military operation in northern Syria does not target any country or individual, and is aimed only at terrorist groups, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said. He had earlier stated that Turkey was in Syria to “end the rule of the cruel Assad.”

“The aim of the Euphrates Shield Operation [in northern Syria] is not any country or person, but only terrorist organizations,” Erdogan said Thursday, as quoted by the Hurryiet Daily News.

“No one should doubt this issue that we have uttered over and over, and no one should comment on it in another fashion or try to derail it,” he added.

The latest comments come in contrast to remarks Erdogan made on Tuesday, when he said Turkey’s operation in Syria, launched in late August, aimed “to end the rule of the tyrant [Syrian President] al-Assad who terrorizes with state terror.”

This drew surprise from Russia, which asked for clarification of the remarks.

According to Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, this was provided when Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish leader Erdogan discussed the issue by phone on Wednesday.

“I can only say that a telephone conversation between our president and Erdogan took place yesterday, and the topic [of Turkey’s presence in Syria] was addressed. Yes, he [Erdogan] gave an explanation,” Ushakov told reporters on Thursday, without elaborating.

On Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said that Ankara’s operation in Syria is aimed at combating Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) terrorists and other armed terrorist groups.

Currently, in the framework of the ‘Euphrates Shield’ operation we are specifically working with our partners and allies. Our goal is to clear Syria, this region, from Daesh [Arabic pejorative term for Islamic State], from terrorists and Al-Nusra [Front] insurgents,” Cavusoglu said, speaking at a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Mediterranean town of Alanya.

“We will continue to pursue a policy that is harmonic and coincides with the position of Russia – to search for and find a political solution to the conflict and to provide systematic humanitarian assistance,” Cavusoglu added, as quoted by the Interfax.

He stated that Turkey’s policy on Syria “remains unchanged.”

“We are cooperating with other countries, but we think that our close cooperation with Russia will provide greater benefits,” Cavusoglu said.

Without a political solution on Syria, the fight against IS may prove ineffective, the Turkish foreign minister acknowledged following the meeting with his Russian counterpart.

Lavrov stressed on Thursday that he expected close Russia-Turkey cooperation on Syria to help make a real contribution to the implementation of decisions by the international community.

Mazhar Zümrüt ‘Turkey is like Germany after 1933’

December 1, 2016 By administrator

asylum More and more Turks are applying for political asylum in Germany. They feel threatened and repressed by the Erdogan government, and they fear for their lives. Most applicants are Kurds, like Mazhar Zümrüt.

Elegantly-dressed Mazhar Zümrüt (above) does not want to speak with us in the asylum center’s community room: He doesn’t trust the others living there. “They could spy on me,” he whispers. He is mistrustful, and feels persecuted and spied upon even in supposedly safe Germany. Yet, he is doing better here on the German countryside at the edge of North-Rhine Westphalia. He has settled in here, in his small, brightly-painted room. He says he has no other choice.

Fighting for political asylum

Mazhar Zümrüt has survived an odyssey. He first fled to Syria and then Iraq before arriving in Germany in May. He officially applied for political asylum on May 20. He says he feared for his life in a country in which repression and despotism have spread under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan: “The Turkey that I fled is like Germany in 1933,” according to Zümrüt. Now, he pins all his hopes on Germany. “The rule of law is still respected here.”

As a Kurd living in Diyarbakir, he experienced injustice every day. He was cursed as a traitor and a terrorist. When police broke into his house last summer he knew it was time to leave. There has been a warrant out for Mazhar Zümrüt’s arrest since then – forcing him to go into hiding, separated from his wife. Zümrüt is accused of being a member of the outlawed militant group, PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party).

The 64-year-old Zümrüt, a former civil servant in the Ministry of Employment, denies the accusation. He says he is simply a member of the Kurdish BDP (Peace and Democracy Party), a local branch of the pro-Kurdish HDP (Peoples’ Democratic Party) with seats in Turkey’s parliament – the representatives of which were summarily arrested last month. And that is exactly what he told Germany’s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF).

Record numbers of Turkish asylum seekers

Over the last several months, the agency has registered skyrocketing numbers of Turkish citizens applying for political asylum. Especially in the wake of the failed coup on July 15, and the purge that the Erdogan government has been engaged in since then. In reply to a request from Deutsche Welle, the Federal Office said that 4,437 asylum applications were submitted between January and October alone. That number now likely exceeds 5,000. Most applicants say that they are members of Turkey’s minority Kurdish community. In 2015, the agency says that it only received 1,767 such applications.

The German government and the foreign ministry are exhibiting solidarity with oppressed Turks. Recently, Minister of State at the Foreign Ministry, Michael Roth, explained in an interview: “Critics in Turkey should know that the German government stands with them in solidarity. Politically persecuted persons are free to apply for asylum here.”

Last hope: Germany

For Zümrüt, such declarations are a great relief, and give him hope. “Germany is a country of laws. I don’t think it will turn me over to the fascists in Turkey.” But Mazhar Zümrüt isn’t just worried about his own fate. He shows us pictures from happier days in Eastern Anatolia, in Diyarbakir. Together with his wife, an artist, he smiles broadly into the camera. “I miss her, I want her to come to Germany, too. But my wife has had to go underground as well.” It is difficult to maintain contact with her as Zümrüt fears his phone calls will be listened to by Turkish authorities.

The waiting has taken a toll on his nerves. A German course, which he attends daily, offers a bit of distraction. He says that part of the reason he came to Germany has to do with the fact that he had some German in school and then later at university. “But that was 40 years ago. It is difficult.” Zümrüt is not letting that get him down, however, he is fully engaged in his German class.

Nagging uncertainty

Yet, sentimental feelings come in waves. His wife: abandoned. His future: unclear. His way home: blocked. “Until the rights of Kurds are finally anchored in the constitution there is no way that I can go back to Turkey,” he summarizes.

A decision on his asylum application is due soon. It is said that hope is the last thing to die. But statistics, says Zümrüt, are rather sobering. This year, only about seven percent of those Turks seeking asylum in Germany have received it.

If he is unlucky, the elegant man from Diyarbakir says that he will have no choice but to go into hiding once again. Every morning he goes to the post box in hopes of finding a confirmation letter with the words: Your request for asylum has been granted.

Crashed Chapecoense soccer team jet ‘out of fuel moments before crash’

December 1, 2016 By administrator

out-of-fuel A leaked recording reveals the pilot of the plane carrying a Brazilian soccer team admitted being out of fuel before it crashed. He told air traffic controllers about a “total electric failure” and lack of fuel.

The recordings, obtained by several Colombian media outlets, appeared to show the plane was short on jet fuel before it crashed into the Andes early on Tuesday morning.

The pilot of the British-built jet could be heard repeatedly requesting permission to land due to a “total electric failure” and lack of fuel. But he did not declare an emergency.

A female controller could be heard giving instructions as the BAE 146 – made by BAE Systems Plc – lost speed and altitude about eight miles from the Medellin airport.

The recordings appeared to confirm the accounts of a surviving flight attendant and a pilot flying nearby, who overheard the frantic pleas from the doomed airliner.

Seventy-one people were killed, including players of the Chapecoense AF football club, who were en route to the biggest game in their history: the Copa Sudamericana final. The team was virtually wiped out in the crash.

Only six on board the charter flight survived, including three of the Chapecoense players.

Colombian civil aviation director Alberto Bocanegra told RCN Radio that an empty fuel tank was one hypothesis being examined.

Bocanegra said investigators were reviewing the plane’s flight recorders and the air traffic control voice recording. He said if the plane had run out of fuel, it would indicate an “act of negligence” by the pilot, who was responsible for ensuring fuel supplies were adequate for the trip.

Planes are required to have enough extra fuel on board to fly at least 30 to 45 minutes to another airport in the case of an emergency. Local media cited aviation experts as saying that the jet was flying at its maximum range.

Colombian media were the first to point out that the plane appeared not to have exploded or burned upon impact, suggesting a possible absence of fuel.

The airline director Gustavo Vargas told Bolivian television that the plane may have skipped a planned refueling stop in northern Bolivia because the airport was closed.

Soccer-mad Brazil declared three days of mourning following the crash, and fans, along with global soccer legends including Lionel Messi and Pele sent condolences.

mm/gsw (AP, dpa, Reuters)

source: DW.com