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CEO of Coca-Cola with Turkish background invited to join the campaign of Armenian Genocide denial
Jean Eckian © armenews.com
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BAGHDAD – Agence France-Presse / The Associated Press
The wanted deputy of executed dictator Saddam Hussein praised the Islamic State jihadists who took over large swathes of the country last month as “heroes” in an unauthenticated audio message released on July 13.
The recording features a 15-minute speech in a raspy, quavering voice purported to be that of 72-year-old Izzat Ibrahim al-Duri, who was Iraq’s vice-president when US-led coalition forces invaded in 2003.
The voice in the recording, which AFP could not immediately confirm to be that of Duri, praised “some groups of (insurgents) Ansar al-Sunna and, in addition to these, the heroes and knights of Al-Qaeda
and the Islamic State.”
The Islamic State (IS) has been fighting in Syria and Iraq and on June 29 proclaimed a “caliphate” straddling both countries and headed by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who now calls himself Caliph Ibrahim.
Its fighters spearheaded a devastating military offensive by a coalition of Sunni militant groups that swept through large swathes of northern and western Iraq.
The onslaught was contained barely 50 miles from the capital Baghdad, exacerbating sectarian tensions nationwide and pushing Iraq to the brink of disintegration.
“We give them a special salute with pride, appreciation and love,” said the man in the recording, introduced by another voice as the great commander of the Baath party.
“A dear salute to their leaders, which issued a general amnesty on every one who betrayed himself, betrayed God, betrayed his country but then atoned.”
He then went on to list several, sometimes obscure, Sunni militant groups believed to have rallied behind the Islamic State for last month’s offensive.
Saddam’s regime was secular and Izzat al-Duri is believed to be the leader of Jaysh Rijal al-Tariq al-Naqshbandi (JRTN), or Naqshbandiya order, a group of Sufi inspiration long seen as a rival to jihadist groups such as IS. The latest such message attributed to Saddam’s red-haired right-hand man, one of the former regime’s most recognisable figures, was released in January 2013.
After the December 2003 capture of Saddam Hussein, the wiry general nicknamed “Red Moustache” by some became the most senior figure, the King of Clubs, in the U.S. army’s infamous deck of cards of wanted Iraqis. He was best known to Iraqis as “The Iceman” for his humble origins selling blocks of ice on the streets of Mosul, Iraq’s second city and now a key jihadist hub.
His name resurfaced in unverified recordings linked to the JRTN, which appears to have evolved from a network of influential Sunnis akin to freemasonry into a fully-fledged armed rebel group bent on undermining the Shiite majority’s stranglehold on power.
Sunni blocs agree on speaker
The Iraqi parliament’s Sunni blocs have agreed on a candidate for the post of parliament speaker, paving the way for the legislature to take the first formal step toward forming a new government.
The legislature is scheduled to meet Sunday amid pressure to quickly agree on new leadership that can hold the country together in the face of a Sunni militant offensive. Lawmakers failed to make any progress in parliament’s first session on electing a new speaker, president and prime minister, and deadlock prompted the second session to be postponed until July 13.
Sunni lawmaker Mohammed al-Karbooli said in a statement late Saturday that Sunni parties decided on Salim al-Jubouri as their nominee for speaker. He said al-Jubouri promised not to support a third term for embattled Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who is under pressure to step aside.
Under an informal arrangement that took hold after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, the speaker’s chair goes to a Sunni, the presidency to a Kurd and the prime minister’s post to a Shiite.
If parliament has a quorum July 13, it could vote on al-Jubouri’s nomination. But in the past, Iraq’s Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish political blocs have agreed to all three posts ahead of time as a sort of package deal. It was unclear whether political leaders would insist on a similar arrangement this time around.
According to the constitution, parliament will have 30 days after choosing a new speaker to elect a president, who will have 15 days to ask the leader of the majority in the 328-seat legislature to form a government. Then a prime minister will be picked.
July/13/2014
The 2014 competitions in different school subjects have started, with Armenian students participating, Armenia’s minister of Education and Science Armen Ashotyan wrote on his Facebook page.
The 55th international mathematics competition took place in South Africa, July 3 to 13. The Armenian team won two silver medals and one bronze medal, as well as three diplomas.
The 25th biology competition took place July 6 to 13. Armenian students won three bronze medals.
“I congratulate all of us – students and teachers for high marks. Chemistry, physics, information science and astronomy competitions are ahead,” Ashotyan wrote.
Armenia is well-positioned to join the Customs Union in 2014, Trade Minister of the Eurasian Economic Commission Andrei Slepnev said on July 11 during the annual seminar for heads of diplomatic missions and consular institutions of Belarus, BelTA reported.
“Armenia is well-prepared to join the Eurasian Economic Commission. Virtually all the issues have been settled already,” he said. According to Andrei Slepnev, an extensive roadmap for Armenia has been drafted. The Trade Minister deems it necessary to pay close attention to customs control of goods imported from this country.
According to the minister, one of the biggest challenges now are different WTO obligations of Armenia and Russia. In this regard the parties plan to establish a transition period during which the matter will be settled.
Source: PanARMENIAN.Net
Airstrikes by the Israel Defense Forces on Gaza have hit a mosque and a center for the disabled, killing two women. That raises the death toll from the IDF‘s “Operation Protective Edge” to more than 120.
Officials claim the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) targeted the mosque because militants had stored rockets there. Since Israel launched “Operation Protective Edge” Tuesday, militants have launched 700 rockets into the country, killing no one so far, perhaps thanks in part to the Iron Dome missile-defense system, which has intercepted 140 such attacks so far.
“We have accumulated achievements as far as the price Hamas is paying and we are continuing to destroy significant targets of it and other terror organizations,” Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said after a meeting with top security officials on Saturday. “We will continue to punish it until quiet and security returns to southern Israel and the rest of the country.”
Air raid sirens have sounded as far north as Haifa, 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Gaza, previously thought out of missile range. A rocket struck a gas station Friday in the southern city of Ashdod, leaving eight people injured, one man seriously. In another incident, a rocket launched from Gaza made a direct hit on a house in Beersheba, though the family living there was out.
The UN, which say some three-quarters of the Palestinians killed in Gaza are civilians, said the campaign may violate international law. On Saturday, the organization called for a ceasefire, saying it was worried about the possibility of escalating casualties on both sides.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has asked Hamas to tell militants to hold their fire. “I don’t like it when Palestinian blood is being traded,” Abbas told Lebanese television. He said the IDF had superior firepower and that, “with great sorrow, Israel does not treat us as humans or people.”
Relations between Israeli and Palestinian officials were at a low even before “Operation Protective Edge” began.
‘Deeply disturbing reports’
In Israel’s last major Gaza assault, 2012‘s weeklong “Operation Pillar of Defense,” airstrikes killed 100 Palestinians and the IDF earned accusations of war crimes for bombing civilians and media. In “Protective Edge,” Israel has killed 120 people, as many as two-thirds of them civilians, including the two women killed Saturday at the center for people with disabilities, and more than 20 of those children.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would press the campaign until militants ceased fire. IDF troops have massed along the border ahead of a possible ground invasion, creating worry of a repeat of “Operation Cast Lead,” in which more than 900 Palestinian civilians were killed in a three-week period at the end of 2008 and beginning of 2009.
By Saturday, the IDF had struck more than 1,100 targets, including rocket launchers, command centers and weapons facilities. Gaza officials say the strikes have also hit places of worship, health care centers and homes. Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Kidra said on Saturday that, in addition to the 120 Palestinians killed, more than 920 had been wounded in the attacks by Israel.
mkg/rc (Reuters, AFP, dpa, AP)
By Kaziwa Salih
The Middle East, particularly Iraq and Syria turned into a triangle battlefield, amongst fanatical groups with diverse titles and similar aims, creating an Islamic state with Stone Age approaches. There are two tyrannical Governments completing this dimension which are Iraq and Syria. The Peshmarga of Kurdistan is the only force defending freedom, and confronting the atrocities inflicted by these groups.
Since U.S. administration revealed that democratization could become a true mission of American foreign policy, they have been involved in so-called spreading democracy and the brining of stability to Middle East. Presumably, they are the vanguard of this impossible mission. However, the consequences attest to this process of democratization have turned to an hideous war and might lead to a Third World War eventually.
What America considers democratization, universally defined as Americanization, and is depicted in Middle East as occupation of their land..These allegations have been getting more legitimacy with U.S. foreign policy’s overlooking Peshmerga of Kurdistan’s achievements and their roles in the area.
The United States of America disregard Peshmerga forces that are true defenders of democracy, by dehumanizing them within the countries that U.S government allegedly helps. Thus creates distrust toward the U.S. intentions and uprooting of democracy and peace. So far, neither America nor the governments of Iraq and Syria were able to fight the Islamic States of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to achieve stability in the region, the way the Peshmerga of Kurdistan has attained.
The Peshmerga of Kurdistan are the strongest and the best bulwark against ISIS advances in both Iraq and Syria. Peshmerga forces are controlling the Kurdish areas and turning them into safe havens for people in both countries. They brought stability and security to the region during Bashar Al-Assad atrocities and now during ISIS invasions. The Kurdish Peshmerga tries to stop the influx of Iranian militias entering Iraq via Kurdistan by controlling the border. Turkey has jailed Abdullah Ocalan, the most influential Kurdish leader and one of the hundred most influential characters in the world. Yet, the Kurds and the Kurdish Peshmerga have been seeking a democratic and peaceful decree with Turkey for decades. Further, the democratization of Turkey has always been their mission. The Kurdish Peshmerga groups are the only force in the Middle East who do not decapitate people; do not loot; do not rape; do not use chemicals, and they are not invaders of any country. Rather they are the existence of Kurdish suffering and oppression. Their doctrine and honoured reputation have attracted many people around the world to affiliate and struggle for Peshmerga’s principles.
For outsiders and the media, different names of Peshmerga emerges, such as the Kurdish Army group, the Kurdish force, Rebels, PJAK, DTP, PKK, PYD,YPJ, …etc. But for insiders and Kurds, they are all Peshmerga, and have one mission, which is to end persecutions of Kurdish people, alongside other minorities, especially Christians. Whereas fighting terrorists by stopping the advancement of ISIS in Syria and Iraq.
The security and peace, people have enjoyed so far in these areas under their watch full eye of Peshmerga, accomplished by not only one Kurdish Peshmerga group, but all the groups. This proves that all Peshmerga forces are freedom and peace fighters, not only selective ones. As U.S labels some as terrorists while others are freedom fighters. Terrorists have one aim, which is annihilation; however, all Kurdish groups’ aim is to fight long for protection.
U.S. foreign policy should rethink its strategy towards the Kurds; readjust their terrorist list, and consider the Peshmerga of Kurdistan as a frontline of democracy. The current situation and the historical achievements of the Peshmerga against the terrorists and their significant roles in peace initiatives should be the foundation of the suggested reconsideration.
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Kaziwa Salih: a Kurdish author, anti-genocide and war scholar, the publisher and editor of two Kurdish magazines. She is the author of 12 books, and has received several international awards. In 2010, she founded the Anti-Genocide Project to bring together the voices of genocide victims living in Canada. She is the 2014 PEN Canada Writer-in-Resident at George Brown College.
In a possible portent of growing factional conflict, a leading Kurdish minister was removed from Iraq’s government, and the Kurdish semi-autonomous government took over two oilfields in the north, the CNN reports, citing officials.
Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, the face of Iraqi diplomacy for a more than a decade, was removed Friday by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, two senior Iraqi government officials said.
Zebari’s ouster occurred as Kurds in Iraq’s government launched a boycott followed comments made Thursday by al-Maliki, who purportedly linked ISIS extremists and Baathists to the Kurdish Regional Government in Irbil.
The Kurds strongly dispute al-Maliki’s allegations and say he wants to scapegoat the Kurds for his failures in northern Iraq and divert attention from how ISIS militants have poured into Iraq and waged warfare against the government, a senior Kurdish official said.
The senior Kurdish official accused al-Maliki of trying to turn a conflict between al-Maliki’s Shiite-dominated government and Sunnis – some of whom have supported the extremists from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria — into a dispute between Arabs and Kurds.
Appointed as interim foreign minister was Hussain Shahristani, a Shiite and an al-Maliki adviser who is deputy prime minister for energy affairs, two senior Iraqi government officials said.
By Sara Khojoyan
ArmeniaNow reporter
Armenia and Iran are going to sign a memorandum on cooperation in the field of tourism. On Thursday Armenia’s government approved the memorandum that will enable both countries to coordinate and promote tourist visits between the two countries as well as international tours to both neighboring countries as a package.
The number of Iranian tourists visiting Armenia had been steadily on the rise for years, but the international sanctions against Tehran somewhat reduced the tourist flow to Armenia from the neighboring country in the past three years.
Head of the Department of Tourism at Armenia’s Ministry of Economy Mekhak Apresyan said that already in the first quarter of 2014 the number of Iranian tourists began to rise again, which is due to the reduction of the scale of sanctions against Iran after Hassan Rouhani’s becoming president of the Islamic Republic.
“Iran is an important market for us. This country is not only our neighbor, but we have good neighborly relations with it, which is important for the sphere. Armenia is more accessible and affordable for them and with this new memorandum we will expand and intensify our cooperation in the sector,” said Apresyan.
Another direction of cooperation, according to the official, is to promote the number of regional tourist visits to Armenia-Iran. “By signing this memorandum we will conduct more intensive work in this direction,” he said.
As part of the memorandum the government plans to put exchange of studies and statistics in the related sphere as well as mutual provision of information materials on Armenia’s and Iran’s historical and cultural heritage, traditions, celebrations, nature, etc on a more coordinated basis.
These activities as well as exchanges of upcoming scheduled tourism events, according to industry representatives, will provide an opportunity for mutual promotion of tourism.
By its rate of development and results tourism is one of Armenia’s most dynamically growing sectors that showed growth even in conditions of the global economic crisis when the country’s economy as a whole registered a double-digit decline.
According to the official statistics, in 2013 more than 950,000 tourists visited Armenia, which is by 13.5 percent more than in 2012.
In the first quarter of 2014, which is not the most intensive period of tourist visits, the growth was even higher. Thus, as compared to January-March 2013, Armenia saw a 20.5-percent increase in the number of tourists (more than 150,000).
“There is the potential, and our policy is aimed at getting ensuring the growth of the number of tourists and revenues from their visits that will also create new jobs and thereby will contribute to the country’s economic growth and sustainable development,” said Apresyan, adding that the tourism development concept envisages bringing the number of tourists annually visiting Armenia to 3 million in the next 30 years.
According to the representative of the Ministry of Economy, 98 percent of those who visit Armenia leave the country satisfied, which is due to the efficient cooperation between the State and the private sector.
Tourism expert, Armenian Institute of Tourism Rector Robert Minasyan believes that tourism development in Armenia is possible only after the creation of a special cadastre. Last month at a meeting with reporters he said that such a structure should identify problems in the field of tourism and offer solutions to them on the basis of research.
“One cannot develop the tourism sector with closed eyes. We need to think about creating a cadastre that will examine the amount of means received by the State from travel agencies,” said Minasyan, according to arka.am.
DETROIT—On Friday, June 20, some 600 commissioners to the 221st General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (USA), meeting in Detroit, Mich., adopted with near unanimity a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide and adopting the 2015 church calendar designating April 26 as the day for its observance. It also directed the church’s Mission Agency to prepare educational and liturgical resources for member churches in preparation for the event.
This historic resolution, which was the first of its kind for a major American church body, was adopted by the 1.8 million-member church. It originated in the local presbyteries of Los Ranchos (Anaheim, Calif.), Chicago, and Palisades (New Jersey), and was sent on to the national body for adoption. Two overture advocates who played a vital role in this regard were Rev. Dr. Christine Chakoian (Chicago Presbytery) and Rev. Dr. Vartkes Kassouni (Los Ranchos Presbytery). Dr. Chakoian is the senior pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Lake Forest, Ill. Dr. Kassouni is retired, and at present the parish associate of the Tustin Presbyterian Church of Tustin, Calif. Central to the development and writing of the resolution (called an overture) was the staff of the Jinishian Memorial Program (Eliza Minassian, director, and Cara Taylor, coordinator) and the World Mission Agency of the Presbyterian Church (USA), with Greg Allen-Pickett the general manager of operations.
Assisting Rev. Drs. Chakoian and Kassouni was Rev. Fr. Garabed Kocharian, pastor of St. John’s Armenian Church of Southfield, Mich. They spoke on Mon., June 16, before the meeting of the Peacemaking and International Relations Committee, which had to hear, debate, and approve the resolution, and then send it on to the plenary session for final adoption. Their presentations were coordinated, first in an “open hearing” where Chakoian and Kochakian spoke, and then in the action phase where Kassouni spoke calling on the Assembly to take this historic step and recognize the massacres of 1.5 million as “the first genocide of the 20th century.”
The overture includes four key points. One, it urges member congregations to recognize the Armenian Genocide, express deep sympathy to the Armenian people, and designate April 24 every year as the day of remembrance, and honors the provisions of American and international law in this regard. Two, it supports the designation of “genocide” for the death of 1.5 million Armenians and the expulsion of 1 million more from the Ottoman Empire in the years 1915-23.
Three, it directs the stated clerk of the General Assembly to call on the president and the Congress of the United States of America to recognize and condemn the death and expulsion of the Armenians, and to communicate this resolution to our ecumenical partners nationally and internationally. Four, it directs the Presbyterian Mission Agency to encourage appropriate observance of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide (subsequently choosing April 26, 2015) in the churches, with accompanying educational and cultural forms of remembrance, noting the important role played in this endeavor by the Jinishian Memorial Program.
The resolution received great support by the committee during its hearings and action. The Plenary Session affirmed its recommendation and adopted it with no opposition. This was a rare occasion when three Armenian clergy (two Protestant and one Apostolic) stood together in strong cooperative witness and support on behalf of the Armenian people. The process took a long time, starting in January 2014, and worked its way up to the General Assembly in June. It’s a great tribute to cooperative, consistent, intelligent, and dedicated effort on behalf of our Armenian people, past and present.
An Azeri saboteur was killed during an attempt to cross into Karabakh in the Karvachar area, Defence Minister stated during a military parade to mark the 17th anniversary the 4th army corps formation.
According to Seyran Ohanyan, an Armenian officer and a woman were killed during the shootout.
On July 10, Armenian forces curbed a sabotage attempt as Azeris tried to infiltrate the border in the Nagorno Karabakh Republic’s Karvachar area, the NKR defense army press service reported. As a result of prompt actions, Azeri diversion group was discovered, with several saboteurs arrested, while the others fled the site.
No injuries on Armenian side were reported.
Later, the press service of the Nagorno-Karabakh Defense Ministry has unveiled photos of the Azerbaijani saboteur captured on July 10.
“Unwilling to accept reality, Azerbaijani propaganda denies any information that reveals its true face. Since reliability of the photos we had released was disputed, we also present the photos of Guliyev Shahbaz Jalaloglu, a captured member of the subversive group, which we have taken ourselves,” a statement by the NKR Defense Ministry said.
Armenian military serviceman Movses Gasparyan, 20, received a fatal bullet wound in an Azeri sniper attack on July 11.
Gasparyan was fatally wounded at a military base stationed in the south-eastern region of the line of contact between Artsakh and Azerbaijani armed forces.
An investigation is being carried out to find details of the incident, the Karabakh Defense Ministry said.
Source: PanARMENIAN.Net