RED CRESCENT ASSISTS FENER PATRIARCHATE

Hurriyet Daily News
June 5 2012
Turkey

Head of the Turkish Red Crescent Akar (L) with Patriarch Bartholomeos
(R). by Vercihan Ziflioglu

The Turkish Red Crescent (Kızılay), for the first time in its
history, provided 200 boxes of food and clothing aid to the Fener
Greek Orthodox Patriarchate yesterday.

Avedis Hilkat, a board member at the Turkish Red Crescent’s Adalar
office, Ahmet Lutfu Akar, head of the Turkish Red Crescent, Omer
TaÅ~_lı, director-general of the Turkish Red Crescent and TaÅ~_kın
HoÅ~_ver, Marmara Regional disaster manager, met with Fener Rum
Patriarch Bartholomeos.

“The target of the aid is not just Armenians, Rums or Syriacs; we
also provide aid to immigrants, and needy and indigent people around
the patriarchates. Humanity is our target,” Hilkat told the Hurriyet
Daily News.

Next aid

The Turkish Red Crescent has been keeping an eye on the aid recipients,
recording their addresses and names, and the Jewish Rabbinate will
be given aid next week, Hilkat said.

“The boxes will be placed in storage, wherever the Patriarchate
decides to keep them,” Hilkat said. Similar boxes left at the Armenian
Patriarchate last year had caused unrest among Turkey’s Armenian
community for security reasons.

The Red Crescent has also provided aid to Turkey’s Armenian
Patriarchate and Syriac Metropolitan in years past.

The organization provided food and clothing aid to 3,500 immigrants
and needy families living near the Kumkapı district of Istanbul,
with the help of the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey, in December 2011.

The organization has also rendered aid to one-hundred disadvantaged
students at a private Armenian school last month.