19:33,
YEREVAN, MARCH 25, ARMENPRESS. Armenia announced its starting lineup for the Euro 2024 qualifier against Turkey due in Yerevan tonight at 21:00 local time.
The starting lineup: Arsen Beglaryan, Varazdat Haroyan, Taron Voskanyan, Ugochukwu Iwu, Eduard Spertsyan, Lucas Zelarayan, Tigran Barseghyan, Kamo Hovhannisyan, Norberto Balekian, Georgi Harutyunyan, Nair Tiknizyan.
Southern California plaintiffs’ lawyer Mark Geragos sued the Los Angeles Times, alleging the newspaper defamed him in a series of stories over a $17.5 million settlement for Armenian genocide insurance cases.
The lawsuit filed against the Times and three reporters comes one year after the newspaper ran stories that Geragos alleges defamed him and painted him in a false light. Geragos and Brian Kabateck were two of the lawyers involved in groundbreaking cases that allowed Armenians to recover insurance payments for the deaths of their family members killed in a genocide that ravaged their country more than a century ago.
The newspaper on March 23, 2022, reported that corrupt acts spoiled the reparations process by diverting funds to outsiders.
“Then, after manufacturing allegations against Mr. Geragos and pressuring the State Bar of California to launch a public investigation of the long-closed matter, the LAT relied on this very investigation to repeatedly defame Mr. Geragos in subsequent articles, claiming that its continued defamation of him was protected by the fair report privilege,” the lawsuit said.
“The totality of the circumstances, including the repeated defamation and portrayal of Mr. Geragos in a false light, in the face of credible evidence disproving the narrative advanced by the LAT, demonstrates Defendants’ malice towards him,” according to the complaint.
The newspaper Friday declined to comment on the filing.
The stories on the lawsuit against AXA SA, a French insurance company, were “based on unreliable information from witnesses whose veracity should have been questioned,” the lawsuit said. “Moreover, the LAT ignored the information and evidence provided by Mr. Geragos’ offices and published the story they had already written in complete disregard for the truth.”
The California State Bar last September announced it was investigating Geragos and Kabateck over the insurance settlement dispersals. The bar, in announcing the ethics probe, thanked the newspaper “for its excellent reporting on the distribution of Armenian Genocide settlement funds.” The bar further stressed that the announcement isn’t “an indication of any misconduct by the attorneys being investigated.”
“Once we did a public records request of the state bar and saw that what I had previously thought was bad journalism by the LA Times had crossed the line to malicious, we had to do it,” Geragos said Friday. “And I’m confident that the discovery and litigation is going to show that they not only had an agenda, but one that was motivated by malice.”
A bar representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of the investigation.
Geragos and Kabateck uncovered the theft of settlement funds by co-class counsel, who the pair sued to recoup the funds and ensure amends were made, the lawsuit said.
The complaint alleges state claims of libel, false light invasion of privacy, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Geragos is represented by Geragos & Geragos APC.
The case is Geragos v. Los Angeles Times Communications LLC, Cal. Super. Ct., No. 23STCV06397, case management notice filed 3/23/23.
16:28,
YEREVAN, MARCH 20, ARMENPRESS. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that his March 20 meeting with Armenian FM Ararat Mirzoyan was very “comprehensive”.
He said the entire scope of bilateral relations in all areas was covered during the talks.
“We discussed the regional and international issues and outlined the directions for further development of strategic partnership,” Lavrov said at a joint press conference with Mirzoyan in Moscow. “We paid special attention to economic partnership, exchange of business missions and other projects.”
FM Lavrov said that the issues of implementing the North-South transport corridor with Armenia’s participation were also discussed, among other issues.
The Russian FM attached importance to close political contacts, noting that the contacts will be continuous.
18:44,
YEREVAN, MARCH 17, ARMENPRESS. Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu had a telephone conversation. ARMENPRESS reports, citing the Azerbaijani media, the ministers discussed regional issues, including the current situation in the South Caucasus, as well as the restoration processes after the devastating earthquake in Turkey.
Artur Davtyan (Armenia) has won his second gold medal in the phases of the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup.
The world and European champion scored 15.083 points and surpassed everyone else, winning another gold medal in the final of the Men’s Vault at the second phase—in Doha, the capital of Qatar—of the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup.
Artur Davtyan also became a gold medalist in the Vault in the first phase that was held in Cottbus, Germany, with 15.133 points.
Artur Davtyan was Armenia’s only medalist in the second phase in Doha.
The phases of the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup are ranked for individual exercises of the World Cup where spots to the Olympic Games in Paris are contested.
The third phase of the Artistic Gymnastics World Cup will take place in Azerbaijani capital Baku, but Team Armenia will not compete.
Armenian News note: View video and photos at the link below:
TEHRAN, Mar. 05 (MNA) – The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said that the exchange of fire between the Azeri and Armenian sides in the Karabakh region left a number of injuries and casualties.
A statement by the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry claimed it received information about the transportation of military equipment, ammunition, and personnel from Armenia to the Karabakh region through the Khankendi-Khalfali-Turshsu road, where a Russian peacekeeping contingent has been stationed since the aftermath of the fall 2020 conflict in the region and a January 2021 pact with Baku and Yerevan, according to Anadolu Agency.
“On the morning of March 5, in order to check the received information, an attempt was made to stop and check the vehicles carrying illegal military transports by units of the Azerbaijan Army. Shots were fired from the other side and there were casualties and injuries from both sides as a result of the skirmish,” the statement said.
The Armenian media also accused the Azeri side of sabotage attempts, saying that three Azeri soldier was killed and one wounded in the clashes.
RHM/PR/FNA14011214000755
U.S. Congressman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) on Tuesday released a statement commemorating the Sumgait pogrom. This year marks the 35th anniversary of the massacres of Armenians that took place on 27-29 February 1988.
Rep. Schiff’s full statement is provided below.
“I rise today to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the pogrom against the Armenian residents of the town of Sumgait, Azerbaijan. Beginning on February 27, 1988 and over the course of three days, Azerbaijani mobs assaulted and killed Armenians. The violence left dozens of Armenian civilians dead and hundreds injured, women and girls were raped, and some victims were burned alive after being tortured and beaten. Thousands were forced to flee their homes, leaving behind their belongings. Armenian homes and businesses were left to be looted and destroyed.
The pogroms came about as the result of years of hateful, racist anti-Armenian propaganda woven into the very fabric of Azerbaijani society by Azerbaijani leaders, who made little effort to punish those responsible, instead attempting to cover up the atrocities in Sumgait and denying the government’s role in instigating the killings. This unprovoked violence against Armenians was a precursor to subsequent attacks on ethnic Armenians, including the pogroms in Kirovabad, Baku, and the Maragha Massacre.
Time has not healed the wounds of those victimized in the pogroms or their families because three decades later, Azerbaijan’s aggression against the people of Armenia and Artsakh continues.
Beginning on September 27, 2020, and over 44 days, Azerbaijani forces once again targeted and murdered innocent Armenians in Artsakh and displaced tens of thousands more. Azerbaijan’s violence again escalated in September of 2022, when Azeri forces shelled homes in the villages of Karmir Shuka and Taghavard in Artsakh and launched an unprovoked assault on sovereign Armenian territory.
Today, Azerbaijan continues to terrorize the people of Artsakh by blocking the Lachin Corridor — the only road connecting Artsakh to Armenia. Since the blockade on December 12, 2022, the humanitarian crisis in Artsakh has grown more dire by the day, with widespread shortages of food, medicine and other necessities and rolling blackouts amid freezing temperatures. The effect has been devastating to the 120,000 individuals living in Artsakh, including children and the elderly.
These are the horrific consequences when aggression and hatred grow unchecked and when Aliyev’s hostility is met with deafening silence, emboldening him to continue, and expand, his unprovoked attacks on the Armenian people, knowing there will be no repercussions. This is why Azerbaijan considers it acceptable to annihilate Armenians in their historical homeland. We cannot allow violence and crimes against humanity to go unanswered.
The United States must immediately and permanently stop all U.S. assistance to Azerbaijan and impose sanctions. It must also direct U.S. humanitarian assistance to Artsakh, call for the safe and unconditional release of the remaining Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians, hold Azerbaijan accountable for the destruction of religious and cultural sites, and support democracy in Armenia and a free, independent Artsakh.
On this tragic anniversary, as we pause to remember the innocent victims of the pogroms, we are also reminded that despite the trials the Armenian people have faced, it has not broken their faith, determination, and their will to survive in the face of constant threats from Azerbaijan. Today, let us recommit ourselves to doing everything we can to bring liberation to our Armenian brothers and sisters abroad, once and for all.”
ANKARA
As condolences poured in and countries mobilized support, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has been engaged in intense diplomatic contacts since the deadly Feb. 6 earthquakes in southern Türkiye.
Cavusoglu has held 23 meetings and more than 70 phone calls with ministers, foreign diplomats, and senior representatives of international organizations.
The magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 quakes were centered in Kahramanmaras and struck 10 other provinces – Adana, Adiyaman, Diyarbakir, Elazig, Hatay, Gaziantep, Kilis, Malatya, Osmaniye, and Sanliurfa.
More than 13 million people have been affected by the devastating quakes, while the death toll is now over 44,200.
Cavusoglu met with Tahsin Ertugruloglu, foreign minister of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), on Feb. 9, followed by meetings with Martin Griffiths, the UN under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator, on Feb. 10 and Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov on Feb. 11.
On Feb. 12, Cavusoglu met his Greek counterpart Nikos Dendias in the quake-hit Hatay province, where he thanked Greece for its support during “such difficult times.”
On Feb. 13, Cavusoglu held separate talks Equatorial Guinea Foreign Minister Angue Simeon and Libya’s Najla Elmangoush in the capital Ankara.
In a joint press conference with his Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen in Ankara on Feb. 14, Cavusoglu praised Israel’s “serious” support in search and rescue efforts in Kahramanmaras.
“Israel is one of the first countries that sent support to Türkiye,” said Cavusoglu.
On the same day, Cavusoglu held a meeting with Nechirvan Barzani, head of northern Iraq’s Kurdish Regional Government (KRG).
On Feb. 15, he met Bosnia and Herzegovina’s Foreign Minister Elmedin Konakovic, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, Jordan’s Ayman Safadi, and Florent Ntsiba, state minister and director of the Presidential Cabinet of Congo, in Ankara.
On Feb. 16, Cavusoglu met Costa Rica’s Foreign Minister Arnoldo Andre Tinoco and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who traveled to Türkiye to extend solidarity and support.
“Our NATO allies immediately sent support to Türkiye after the earthquake,” Cavusoglu said.
On Feb. 18, Uzbekistan’s Acting Foreign Minister Bahtiyor Saidov paid a visit to Ankara, where Cavusoglu hailed Uzbekistan for standing by Türkiye at a challenging time.
US secretary of state visits Türkiye
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken paid a visit to Türkiye on Feb. 19-20 to express solidarity and convey Washington’s support.
Cavusoglu and Blinken conducted an aerial inspection of the quake-hit region.
On Feb. 20, they held a joint news conference in Ankara, where Blinken said he was “profoundly saddened” by the devastation.
Later that day, Cavusoglu held a joint news conference with his North Macedonian counterpart Bujar Osmani, as well as Helga Schmid, secretary general of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Cavusoglu hosted Crimean Tatar leader Mustafa Abdulcemil Kirimoglu on Feb. 21, as well as Jang Sung-min, special representative of the president of South Korea.
On Feb. 22, EU Commissioner for Neighborhood and Enlargement Oliver Varhelyi and Johan Forssell, the international development minister of Sweden, paid a visit to Ankara.
On Feb. 23, Cavusoglu held separate meetings with Hissein Brahim Taha, secretary general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and Muhammad Musa Bello, Nigeria’s federal capital territory minister and special presidential envoy.
The same day, Cavusoglu held a joint news conference with his Lebanese counterpart Abdallah Bouhabib and Ali Hamie, Lebanon’s transport minister, who visited Ankara to voice solidarity with Türkiye.
Besides meetings and phone calls, Cavusoglu has also received more than 100 messages of solidarity and support.
17:05, 22 February 2023
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 22, ARMENPRESS. On 21 February, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh Sergey Ghazaryan met with a delegation headed by French MEPs, Co-Chairs of the Friendship Group with Artsakh Sylvie Guillaume and Francois Alfonsi, as well as President of the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD) Kaspar Karampetian, EAFJD Executive Director Heghine Evinyan and Special Programmes Manager of ARF Hay Dat Central Office Gevorg Ghukasyan, the Foreign Ministry of Artsakh said in a press release.
During the meeting, the Minister of Foreign Affairs presented the challenges facing the Republic of Artsakh as a result of the blockade by Azerbaijan, and highly appreciated the principled position of the parliamentarians on the adoption of the relevant resolution of the European Parliament regarding the blockade of Artsakh.
The interlocutors exchanged views on the possibilities of ensuring more active engagement by the international community under the existing circumstances.
In the context of lifting the blockade of Artsakh, Foreign Minister Sergey Ghazaryan emphasized the need for more active and efficient measures, including sanctions against Azerbaijan.
19:28,
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Armenia and Azerbaijan have a genuinely historic opportunity to secure an enduring peace after more than 30 years of conflict, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said before the meeting with Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev within the framework of the Munich Security Conference.
“Well, good afternoon, everyone. I want to thank President Aliyev, Prime Minister Pashinyan for being here today. We believe that Armenia and Azerbaijan have a genuinely historic opportunity to secure an enduring peace after more than 30 years of conflict. The parties themselves have renewed their focus on a peace process, including through direct conversation as well as with the EU and ourselves. The United States is committed to doing anything we can to support these efforts, whether it’s directly with our friends, whether it’s in a trilateral format such as this, or with other international partners.
But I’m very grateful for the presence of both the president and the prime minister today, and look forward to a good conversation. Thank you,” the US State Department quoted Blinken as saying.