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Texas lawmakers holding hearing on Armenian genocide

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April 24 is the 102nd anniversary of the Armenian genocide when the Turkish government killed a million and a half Armenians.

While many countries don’t recognize that the event happened, Texas lawmakers are working to officially acknowledge it with a public hearing.

Armenians from across Texas are at the hearing. Many are testifying and sharing their family stories on what it was like to survive the tragedy.

If the Texas House passes the resolution, Texas will become the 46th state to recognize the Armenian genocide.

Representative Mark Sanford is sponsoring House Resolution 191. He believes it’s time Texas recognizes the genocide which took place during WWI starting in 1915. It was planned and executed by the Turkish government against the entire Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire. Hundreds of thousands of Armenians were tortured, massacred, deported and abducted.

A film about the genocide, “The Promise”, starring Christian Bale and Oscar Isaac was recently released. There’s a free screening of the film at 4 p.m. in the Extension Auditorium of the Capitol.

Syrian ceasefire largely holds, aid preparations begin

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syrian-paceThe truce in Syria continued to hold up on its second day despite reports of minor violations. The Russian government counted 23 breaches of the ceasefire in its first 24 hours, it was reported.

The truce in Syria, brokered between the United States and Russia, could serve as a precursor for peace talks if it continues to hold up. While having the primary purpose of allowing the delivery of humanitarian aid, the ceasefire also stops Assad’s forces from bombing Syrian opposition groups, raising hopes for the revival of peace talks to address the conflict.

The Syrian army said it would abide by the stipulations of the ceasefire for a week, while stressing that it would still defend itself against any acts of aggression and continue attacking Islamist groups, such as the self-styled “Islamic State” (IS). Groups linked to al Qaeda such as Jabhat Fatah al-Sham, which was previously known as the al-Nusra Front, have meanwhile denounced the agreement.

This is why Syria’s largest insurgent groups have expressed doubts about the feasibility of the deal, which still allows for airstrikes against al Qaeda linked militant groups. Several jihadi movements fight alongside more moderate rebels.

A shaky truce

The ceasefire had been hammered out by US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in early September, coming into full effect at sunset on Monday, September 12, marking the beginning of the Muslim high holiday of Eid al-Adha. If it holds for seven days, the US and Russian militaries would set up a new center to coordinate strikes against IS and Jabhat Fatah al-Sham.

The deal marks the second attempt in 2015 to reduce violence in the country following the collapse of a truce at the beginning of the year. The conflict has killed more than 290,000 people since its beginning in 2011 while displacing half of the country’s population.

Violations in Aleppo and beyond

Opposition activists in the city of Aleppo, which has seen heavy fighting in recent months, said that rebel-held parts of the city remained calm. However, aid deliveries, which are also part of the ceasefire, have yet to enter the contested city.

Armenians to hold march in support of Garo Paylan

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f5732f2e263e9f_5732f2e263ed6.thumbArmenian civic activists are planning to hold a march in Yerevan later today to extend their solidarity and support to Garo Paylan, the Turkish-Armenian lawmaker who has severely been beaten in parliament,
They activists have announced the event on Facebook.
They are planning to gather outside the central headquarters of Haypost to head to the UN Office.
In a speech at the Turkish Grand National Assembly in April (days before the Armenian Genocide Remembrance Day), Paylan resurrected the Armenian intellectuals and public figures, killed, arrested and exiled in the Genocide, calling for efforts to create a special commission investigating the circumstances behind their deaths and disappearance.

Reporters Without Borders Mr. Erdogan, we hold you responsible for the security of Can Dündar and Erdem Gül

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arton122832-480x266Reporters Without Borders (RSF) held Wednesday morning in Istanbul Can Dündar the first press conference, managing editor of Cumhuriyet, since his release from Silivri prison Friday, February 26 after ninety-two days of detention.

Facing an audience of journalists gathered on Wednesday, March 2 at the Elite Wold Istanbul hotel in the Reporters Without Borders initiative, Can Dündar denounced the “climate of fear propagated by the Erdogan regime among journalists.” “But we’re journalists, not civil servants in state service. Our duty is to inform the public, including the illegal acts of the government. Upon first hearing of this case on 25 March, we will outline in full light the state’s crimes. We will not defend us, we will make the trial of state crimes. “He recalled on Wednesday to a packed house.

Armenia President holds talks in China

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10130_bbPresident of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, who is on a state visit to China, on Wednesday met with President Xi Jinping.

At the end of the meeting, and as a result of the talks, the two presidents signed a joint declaration on further development and deepening of Armenia-China friendly relations of cooperation.

The parties also signed more than a dozen documents with respect to the development and strengthening of bilateral cooperation between the two countries in several domains.

Prior to his talk with Xi Jinping, however, President Sargsyan was hosted by the Beijing No.2 High School. This learning institution is considered one of the largest and technically best-equipped schools in the Chinese capital city, and it also engaged in international cooperation projects, including student exchange programs with a number of countries.

The Armenian President toured the learning facility and, subsequently, signed the school guestbook.

“I am confident that our two peoples, which have a millennia-old history, will develop and strengthen their ties and cooperation in a climate of friendship and peace,” Serzh Sargsyan specifically wrote in the guestbook.