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Syria Reports Cite 80 Dead in Kessab; Churches Desecrated

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KESSAB, Syria–The Armenian populated villages of Kessab, Syria were the target of three days of brutal cross-border attacks from Turkey by al-Qaeda affiliated armed bands, which have cost 80 lives and forced the civilian 998287_10152343516494083_267260017_npopulation of the area to flee to neighboring hills, with many seeking safe-haven in the nearby cities of Latakia and Basit.

In a written statement, the Armenian National Committee—International, condemned the attacks and Turkey’s active role in aiding and abetting extremist groups in their targeted attacks against the Christian and minority populations in Syria. “For months, we have warned the international community of the imminent threat posed by extremist foreign fighters against the Christian minority population in Syria,” noted the ANC-I statement. “These vicious and unprompted attacks against the Armenian-populated town and villages of Kessab are the latest examples of this violence, actively encouraged by neighboring Turkey. We call upon all states with any influence in the Syrian conflict to use all available means to stop these attacks against the peaceful civilian population of Kessab, to allow them to return to their homes in safety and security. In the last one hundred years, this is the third time that the Armenians are being forced to leave Kessab and in all three cases, Turkey is the aggressor or on the side of the aggressors.”

According to news reports, the armed incursion began on Friday, March 21, 2014, at 5:45a.m., with rebels associated with Al-Qaeda’s al-Nusra Front, Sham al-Islam and Ansar al-Sham crossing the Turkish border and attacking the Armenian civilian population of Kessab. The attackers immediately seized two guard posts overlooking Kessab, including a strategic hill known as Observatory 45 and later took over the border crossing point with Turkey. Snipers targeted the civilian population and launched mortar attacks on the town and the surrounding villages.

According to eyewitness accounts, the attackers crossed the Turkish border with Syria openly passing through Turkish military barracks. According to Turkish media reports, the attackers carried their injured back to Turkey for treatment in the town of Yayladagi.

Some 670 Armenian families, the majority of the population of Kessab, were evacuated by the local Armenian community leadership to safer areas in neighboring Basit and Latakia. Ten to fifteen families with relations too elderly to move were either unable to leave or chose to stay in their homes.

On Saturday, March 22, Syrian troops launched a counteroffensive in an attempt to regain the border crossing point, eye-witnesses and state media reported. However, on Sunday, March 23, the extremist groups once again entered the town of Kessab, took the remaining Armenian families hostage, desecrated the town’s three Armenian churches, pillaging local residences and occupying the town and surrounding villages.
Located in the northwestern corner of Syria, near the border with Turkey, Kessab had, until very recently evaded major battles in the Syrian conflict. The local Armenian population had increased in recently years with the city serving as safe-haven for those fleeing from the war-torn cities of Yacubiye, Rakka and Aleppo.

Assad Regime Protests Turkey’s Involvement to UN
The latest onslaught on Kessab has prompted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government to protest to the United Nations that Turkey was providing cover to rebels crossing the border from its territory. In a message to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Damascus demanded that the Security Council denounce what it called a terrorist attack on Syrian territory.
Syrian state television made reference to the fighting in a breaking news alert, saying the army was “tackling attempts by terrorist gangs to infiltrate from Turkish territory and attack border crossings in northern Latakia province.”

Turkey Downs Syrian Fighter Jet
On March 23, Turkey said its fighter jets shot down a Syrian jet after it crossed into Turkish airspace.

Syria denied that its jet had violated Turkish airspace and, according to Agence France-Presse, accused Turkey of “a flagrant act of aggression that is evidence of Erdoğan’s support for terrorist groups.” The MIG-23 jets were reportedly flying a support mission to assist ground forces repelling extremist fighters which had infiltrated from Turkey into Kessab.

“The international community should restrain Turkey to stop this and similar anti-Armenian operations and in general it antagonistic policy against Armenia and the Armenian people,” concludes the ANC International’s statement.

Sacramento CA. Near East Relief to Be Highlight of Rotunda Exhibit during Advocacy Day

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GLENDALE—On Monday, April 7th, 2014, the Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region (ANCA-WR), the California State Legislature, and California activists will join to commemorate the 99th Anniversary NERof the Armenian Genocide at the State Capitol in Sacramento.

Hundreds across California are expected to gather for Advocacy Day to educate and motivate advocates on the legislative process and on issues significant to Armenian Americans who live across the State. The day’s events will include visits to various legislators’ offices, a commemoration of the Armenian Genocide on the State Senate and Assembly floors, and an exhibit in the Capitol’s Rotunda showcasing the Near East Relief’s (NER) rescue of over a million Armenians, including 134,000 orphans, during and after the Genocide.

“The generosity and assistance displayed through the NER by the United States and the American people in the aftermath of the Armenian Genocide is truly unprecedented.
We are grateful to our state legislators for showcasing this important part of American history on a day when hundreds of Armenian-Americans will join the State of California in commemorating the atrocities that took place in 1915,” stated Elen Asatryan Executive Director of ANCA WR.

The NER was established in 1915 at the behest of U.S. Ambassador to Constantinople Henry Morgenthau, who sent an urgent plea for help to the U.S. State Department to rescue the Armenians in the Ottoman Empire from total annihilation. President Woodrow Wilson responded by asking his advisor Cleveland H. Dodge to form a committee, which was promptly provided with unprecedented access to all government information on the condition of non-Muslim minorities in the Ottoman Empire. Though the NER’s initial fundraising goal was $100,000, it actually raised $117,000,000, the equivalent of $2.7 billion in today’s dollars! While every State in the Union was mobilized to participate in this nationwide public effort of philanthropy, California activists from San Francisco to Fresno to Los Angeles raised several thousand dollars in cash and thousands of tons in food and clothing, amounting to a $1M contribution in one year alone. As a tribute to NER, the ANCA-WR has initiated a project entitled “America We Thank You” to recognize the efforts of NER from 1915-1930 in saving the Armenian Nation from total destruction.

For individuals/groups who are interested in participating from the Los Angeles area, bus transportation to and from Sacramento as well as lodging will be provided.
The bus will depart on Sunday, April 6, 2014 and will return the following evening on Monday, April 7, 2014. For tickets, please visit itsmyseat.com/ancawr. Community members interested in participating that do not need transportation or lodging may register online at ancawr.org/registeradvocacyday. For more information about Advocacy Day, visit ancawr.org, email CAstate@ancawr.org or call (818) 500-1918.

The Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region is the largest and most influential Armenian American grassroots advocacy organization in the Western United States. Working in coordination with a network of offices, chapters, and supporters throughout the Western United States and affiliated organizations around the country, the ANCA-WR advances the concerns of the Armenian American community on a broad range of issues.

Clark University to host lecture commemorating Armenian Genocide

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March 22, 2014 – 11:02 AMT

177141To mark the 99th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, Clark University’s Strassler Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies will present a lecture by Professor Taner Akçam. “On Truth and Memoirs: The Case of an Armenian Soldier in the Ottoman Army” will explore the subject of a vigorous debate over the authenticity of a memoir recently published in Turkey.

Akҫam will discuss the case of Sarkis Torossian who served as a lieutenant in the Ottoman Army during World War I. According to his memoir, Torossian was a graduate of a military college and a decorated Ottoman officer who served at Gallipoli and other important battle fronts. Learning that his parents and sister were deported and died in the Armenian Genocide, Torossian changed allegiance. He joined the Arab rebellion in Palestine and Syria and fought with a French battalion against Kemalist forces in Cilicia. Akçam will consider the veracity of Torossian’s account and interpret the public debate surrounding the memoir in Turkey. Turkish scholars Ayhan Aktar and Edhem Eldem will comment and respond.

Torossian immigrated to the United States in 1920. In 1947, he published his memoirs in English, “From Dardanelles to Palestine: a true story of five battle fronts of Turkey.” Following the Turkish translation published in 2012, reactions in the Turkish press have been intense. Some discredited the memoir as fabricated. Others championed its authenticity. Akҫam will discuss the veracity of Torossian’s account and interpret the public debate surrounding the memoir in Turkey.

This event is part of the 2013-2014 “Critical History” lecture series at the Strassler Center.

A professor of history at Clark University, Akçam holds the Robert Aram & Marianne Kaloosdian and Stephen & Marian Mugar Chair in Armenian Genocide Studies at the Strassler Center. An internationally recognized human rights activist, he was one of the first Turkish intellectuals to recognize and openly discuss the Armenian Genocide. He is the author of several books, most recently, “The Young Turks’ Crime Against Humanity: The Armenian Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing in the Ottoman Empire” (2012), which earned the Middle East Studies Association Albert Hourani Book Award (2013) and was named one of the year’s (2012) best books on the Middle East by Foreign Affairs.

Turkey, Qatar excluded from Cairo Islamic meeting: report

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n_63961_4Prime Minister Erdoğan had criticized Al Azhar Shaikh Ahmed el-Tayeb for backing Mursi’s removal.

Egypt has not invited Qatar and Turkey for a major Islamic conference due in Cairo later this week, according to a report published on March 22.

“We are not having a crisis with the Qatari or Turkish people … The issue lies in the policy of the Turkish and Qatari governments,” Egyptian Minister of Waqfs (religious endowments) Mohammad Jumaa told at a press conference, gulfnews.com has reported.

Cairo will host a conference on March 25 on religious extremism, as Egypt continues a crackdown on Islamists in what the military-backed government portrays as a “war on terrorism”. Around 80 scholars from 34 countries and foreign Islamic organisations are participating in the two-day conference.

According to the report, Jumaa said that Egypt would continue to “welcome” Qatari and Turkish students into Al Azhar, a prestigious Islamic seat of learning.

Relations between Egypt on the one hand and Qatar and Turkey on the other have deteriorated since July last year when the Egyptian military toppled Islamist president Mohammad Mursi following enormous street protests against his one-year rule. Qatar and Turkey are staunch backers of Mursi and his Muslim Brotherhood group.

Earlier this year, Egypt summoned the Qatari ambassador in Cairo to protest Doha’s condemnation of a security crackdown on the Brotherhood’s followers.

Egypt announced this month that it has recalled its ambassador from Qatar and will not send him back in the near future. The announcement was made after the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain withdrew their envoys from Doha, accusing Qatar of meddling in their internal affairs.

“The Ministry of Waqfs will not resume contacts with Turkey until the Turkish government apologizes to Egypt and to his eminence Imam of Al Azhar, and changes its policy towards Cairo,” Jumaa reportedly said.

Late last year, Egypt expelled the Turkish ambassador and downgraded diplomatic ties with Ankara to the level of charge d’affaires in protest against what it described as meddlesome remarks by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The Turkish premier has condemned Mursi’s overthrow as a coup and called for his reinstatement.

The strange story of Anti-Armenian groups in Hawai’i

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BY Karen from MauiFollow    Fri Mar 21, 2014 at 12:25 PM PDT

Daily kos Earlier this year, Nathan Eagle wrote Why Do Two Hawaii Lawmakers Care So Much About Azerbaijan? State representatives Takai and Cabanilla tried to pass anti-Armenian resolution after the two of them traveled to Azerbaijan in 2012 in a trip sponsored by the Azerbaijan government.

The bill generated much controversy as it was accused of rewriting history thusly:

On Feb. 25 and 26, 1992, “Armenian armed forces accompanied by Russian military troops occupied the town of Khojaly in Azerbaijan and killed more than six hundred innocent civilians, including many women, children and the elderly; wounded more than one thousand civilians; and captured more than one thousand two hundred civilians.”

This revisionist history is also being pushed by the Turkish Coalition of America (TCA) which seeks to demonize Armenians and is also rewriting the WWI genocide of Armenians so untruthfully that the University of Minnesota’s Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies removed links to the TCA website for containing “unreliable” information on genocide. TCA sued the university claiming they were “defamed” but lost their suit.

When controversy over the inaccurate information in the bill blew up in her face, State Rep Cabanilla came up with some tangled logic on why it was ok to pass a bill that turns history on its head in furtherance of a campaign to deny genocide against Armenians:

“Maybe (the resolution) is not 100 percent accurate – I don’t know if it is or not – but the fact that they’re an ally and support our troops (in the region), they don’t have to say anything more after that.”[emp added]

BjM8CRzCUAAKq8RYesterday, Congresswoman Hanabusa and the Turkish Coaliton of America hosted an event at the Filipino Community Center (FilCom) with FilCom directors and a few other invitees to honor a $25,000 contribution from the Turkish American community to aid Typhoon Haiyan relief efforts.

TCA appears to spend much of its time whitewashing Turkey’s less than stellar human rights record by wooing minority groups.

As part of its advocacy for Turkish positions including opposition to resolutions declaring the Armenian Holocaust as genocide, TCA has also associated itself with Native American interest groups.

In 2012, TCA attempted to pass legislation permitting Turkey to invest in Native American tribes, and Rep. Hanabusa was one of just 43 Democrats to support the legislation.  This special interest bill in favor of a foreign country (which incidentally just banned Twitter) allowed six Indian tribes to lease land to Turkish companies without securing the usual, often time-consuming Bureau of Indian Affairs approvals.

Armenian-Americans opposed the legislation because of the Turkish government’s refusal to recognize the WWI Turkish slaughter of Armenians.

Rep Frank Pallone (D-NJ) said:

“I have no idea why they’re being so nice to Native Americans. I’m sure there’s some bad underlying reason or something that they’re trying to gain.“

It is also noteworthy that TCA paid nearly $5,000 for a Hanabusa staffer to travel to Turkey.

Foreign countries are not allowed to donate to U.S. Federal candidates.  But their groups like the Turkish Coalition of America get around these rules creatively.

Donating money to an organization representing constituents the candidate wants to woo is an excellent way of laundering foreign money.  Will the $25,000 that TCA donated to the Filipino community’s relief fund with Congresswoman Colleen Hanabusa prominently front and center, help her with the Filipino vote?

Is that why Rep Hanabusa is associating herself with a genocide-denier group?

TCAInvite_zpsb44a1307

But the real question remains: Why are these Azerbaijani and Turkish groups meddling in Hawai’i politics?

 

‘Mwitter’ to replace Twitter in Turkey?

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ISTANBUL

After Erdoğan vowed to close down Twitter, a new website was quickly formed to salute n_63885_4him: ‘Mwitter’

Only minutes after Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vowed to close down Twitter today, a new website was formed, either as a tribute from his followers or a mocking attempt from his critics: “Mwitter”

Erdoğan had earlier said in Turkish: “Twitter, mwitter kökünü kazıyacağız,” translated into English as: “We’ll eradicate Twitter.”

In colloquial Turkish, the “m” phrase cannot be translated easily into any language as it is not a regular lexical item. Its meaning (or the lack of meaning) depends on the intention of the speaker.

As one study explains:

“Semantically, reduplication with m-sound means ‘and so on’, ‘such,’ ‘kind of,’ ‘sort of’ depending on the meaning of the first part of the reduplicative form being ahead of m-insertion. (It) allows the speaker to give less than the amount of information requested, while still appearing cooperative. It indicates that the speaker does not wish to specify or elaborate, but instead appeals to the participant’s common ground for inferring the intended meaning.”

So, Erdoğan could have either meant that he would close down Twitter AND similar websites. Or perhaps, he just used the phrase “mwitter” in a semantically empty way.

Anyway, he sounded confident that his audience would understand him, and apparently at least one Internet user did. Somebody somewhere registered the domain mwitter.com in ironic tribute to Erdoğan, dubbed “the Master” by his followers. The only text on the website reads:

“Just tell us to close it down and we’ll do it, Master. We’re ready…”

Apocalypse: (Armenian Genocide) 5.88 million viewers (Video)

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Yesterday, Tuesday, March 18, on the occasion of the 100 year anniversary of the outbreak of the First World War, the public television channel, France 2, proposed a unique document showing the ins and outs that led to the arton98221-480x283conflict of 1914 -1918. Conflict as the Ottoman Empire take a pretext for murder over a million and a half of its Armenian citizens.

Colorized images in the document, about 2 minutes were devoted to the Armenian Genocide.

One might regret those just 2 minutes on what was the first genocide of the twentieth century, but it should be noted that little filmed images depict the unspeakable that struck the Armenian people.

5.88 million viewers watched the show (source Médiamétrie).

 

Nancy Najarian Announces Candidacy For U.S. Congress

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Candidate with Deep Armenian-American Community Ties Determined to Win Race for Virginia’s 8th Congressional District Seat

Nancy-Najarian-SmallMcLEAN, Va.—Nancy Najarian — a champion for Armenian-Americans, strong communities, quality jobs, and a world-class education for every child – has announced she is running for Virginia’s 8th Congressional District, represented for the past 24 years by now retiring Rep. Jim Moran D-VA. Committed to being a voice that will stand up for our community, Najarian has launched an aggressive fundraising campaign to meet the March 31st deadline – the first quarter of fundraising for a race that most likely will be decided in a June 10, 2014 primary. Nancy is positioning herself to be a strong contender in a very crowded field by raising early money from her supporters nationwide. Those committed to sending to the U.S. Congress a professional woman with strong ties to our community are urged to donate to Najarian for Congress campaign by March 31, 2014.

The VA-8 district borders Washington, D.C., and includes the Cities of Arlington and Alexandria, home to the Alexandria – Gyumri Sister City Association and its annual Armenian Festival. The district also includes portions of Fairfax County, including parts of McLean and Falls Church, two military bases and the Pentagon. Raising significant funds will enable Najarian to place well in the first quarter, gain support from national women’s groups poised to support a competitive woman candidate, and position her to win the upcoming primary on June 10th — a winner takes all primary. With a district that is strongly Democratic, the likelihood of Najarian winning the general election as a primary winner is high.

“I want to bring to the U.S. Congress a steady support for issues affecting the average Armenian-American family. These include empowering small business owners to build and sustain their businesses, supporting children’s welfare and women’s healthcare issues, ending paycheck inequality gaps, increasing public education initiatives and investment in STEM education, and moving a stalled Congress forward by finding solutions to problems so that we all can enjoy a brighter future,” said Nancy Najarian.

Born in Boston, raised in Belmont, baptized and later married in the Armenian Apostolic Church, Nancy Najarian, her husband Mike Stimson and their two children have been residents of Northern Virginia since 1995. Najarian is proud of her Armenian heritage and commitment to uphold her roots as an Armenian mother, a wife, a professional and small business owner. She is the granddaughter of Genocide survivors, and was inspired by her parents’ values of an honest day’s work, playing by the rules, and giving back to the Armenian community. Her business acumen and personal drive derives from the models her parents set. Her father, K. George Najarian, built a successful business from the ground up, her mother went back to school and earned Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees to become an educator, and her stepmother, Dr. Carolann Najarian, has devoted her life to providing charitable medical care in Armenia and the U.S. In addition, her parents, involved early with the relief effort following the 1988 Armenian earthquake and later with support for the newly independent Armenian government and its people, were outstanding models of how to apply Nancy’s professional expertise and academic training to her ethnic roots.

At the height of the Azeri blockade of Armenia and during the armed conflict supporting Nagorno Karabagh’s right to self-determination, Najarian moved to the newly independent Republic of Armenia. In 1992 she taught English to aspiring Armenian MBA students in Yerevan. Later she created and co-managed the non-profit, Technical Assistance for the Republic of Armenia (TARA Inc.), helping struggling Armenian entrepreneurs start businesses and bringing diasporan Armenian professionals to assist Armenian private sector organizations. Najarian was an early Board Member of the Armenian Assembly’s grassroots arm, ARAMAC, raising U.S. government awareness of the severe consequences of the energy blockade against the Armenian people and the economy. Additionally, Najarian is a charter member of the Cambridge-Yerevan Sister City Association, and after graduating with an M.S. focused on International Business and Trade, Najarian volunteered at the Armenian Embassy in Washington, D.C. for the Economic Attaché. As a volunteer fund-raiser, Najarian has raised funds for various Armenian organizations, was for years an active participant in the Armenian Network of America, and throughout her career has offered advice to aspiring Armenian Social entrepreneurs. She holds a Bachelor’s from NYU, and a Master’s from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Washington, D.C.

Turkish Airlines allegedly ships arms to Nigeria, tape reveals

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Yahoo A Turkish Airlines Boeing 737-800 passenger jet takes off from Tegel airport in Berlin April 18, 2007 (AFP Photo/John Macdougall)

Turkish AirlineIstanbul (AFP) – Turkish Airlines allegedly shipped weapons to unknown groups in Nigeria, which has been ravaged by violence between the army and Boko Haram militants, a new incriminating phone call revealed on Tuesday.

The leaked conversation is the latest blow to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has been hit by a corruption probe ensnaring his key allies and a widening phone-tapping scandal.

In a tape posted on YouTube, Mehmet Karatas, an assistant executive of the airline, allegedly tells Mustafa Varank, an advisor to Erdogan, that he feels guilty over national flag carrier’s arms shipment to Nigeria.

“I do not know whether these (weapons) will kill Muslims or Christians. I feel sinful,” Karatas is allegedly heard saying.

The leaked call has the potential to harm the airline’s image — which is 49 percent state-owned and is in an aggressive push to become a global player.

It is the latest in a series of recordings implicating Erdogan and his aides in corruption and other abuses of power ahead of crucial local polls on March 30.

The Turkish strongman has dismissed most of the tapes as “vile” fakes put together by rivals.