Author: Ani Basmajian

Russia to continue dialogue with Armenia on CSTO — Kremlin spokesman

Ani Basmajian
 TASS 
Russia –
Dmitry Peskov stressed that the CSTO “enjoys authority among” the member countries

MOSCOW, May 22. /TASS/. Russia will continue the dialogue with Armenia on the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the media on Monday.

Moscow is certain that the organization is effective and has a potential for further development, he stressed. Peskov was commenting on Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s statement that Armenia would leave the CSTO, if it found the organization “incapable.”

“As for the Armenian prime minister’s statement, we will certainly continue our dialogue with our Armenian friends. We will also talk to them on further joint participation in the CSTO,” the Kremlin spokesman said.

Peskov stressed that the CSTO “enjoys authority” among the member countries.

“This is an organization that has repeatedly demonstrated its effectiveness in various situations. It has a potential to develop,” the presidential spokesman said.

The Russian Foreign Ministry earlier said that Yerevan preferred to opt for the EU, failing to bring the work on sending the CSTO mission to its logical conclusion.

The Collective Security Treaty Organization consists of Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan.

POWs should be repatriated. The US ambassador to Armenia met with the family members of the POWs and missing servicemen

Ani Basmajian

Save

Share

 14:23,

YEREVAN, MAY 13, ARMENPRESS. Kristina Kvien, the Ambassador of the United States of America to Armenia, met with the family members of the servicemen who went missing as a result of the 44-day war and those who were captured by Azerbaijan, ARMENPRESS reports, the US Embassy in Armenia informs.

The message issued by the embassy states that the POWs should be repatriated and the remains of those killed on both sides of the conflict should be returned to their relatives whenever possible.

Azerbaijan hinders the activities of ICRC – Artsakh’s Human Rights Defender

Ani Basmajian

Save

Share

 18:02,

YEREVAN, MAY 10, ARMENPRESS. Since the installation of the illegal checkpoint on the Goris-Stepanakert highway near the Hakari Bridge on April 23, Azerbaijan has been artificially obstructing the normal operation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Nagorno-Karabakh, by which the Azerbaijani side not only violates the provisions of the international humanitarian law, but also the agreement reached during the blockade on the transfer to Armenia of the persons in extremely serious health condition, ARMENPRESS reports, Human Rights Defender of Artsakh Gegham Stepanyan wrote on his Facebook page.

“Thus, Azerbaijan directly ignores the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) of December 21, 2022, obliging it to take all necessary and sufficient measures to ensure the movement of seriously ill persons in need of medical treatment in Armenia through the “Lachin corridor”.

During this time, the ICRC transported patients only twice: on April 28 (13 patients) and on April 29 (16 patients). Since April 29, with the mediation of the ICRC, the transfer of patients to medical institutions of the Republic of Armenia has completely stopped. According to the information received by the Human Rights Defender’s Office, the Azerbaijani side has put forward additional conditions, demanding to check the ICRC cars transporting patients, as well as the passports of the ICRC employees and patients, thus, violating the agreements reached earlier. According to the information received from the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Artsakh, 30 patients in extremely serious condition are waiting for urgent transfer.

Azerbaijan deliberately prevents the supply of essential medicines to Artsakh through the ICRC, as a result of which serious problems arise in medical institutions of Artsakh.

The Azerbaijani side, pursuing the goal of total isolation of Artsakh, is undertaking deliberate actions, aimed at hindering the activities of even humanitarian organisations in Artsakh, putting forward additional artificial demands.

Azerbaijan is not ready to take a constructive position even on the matters of humanitarian nature, does not miss the opportunity to intimidate the peaceful population and deepen their physical and psychological suffering caused by the blockade, deliberately deepening the humanitarian crisis.

Azerbaijan’s behavior directly contradicts the international law and the principles of humanism, which should be clearly condemned by international organisations and the human rights community.

We expect practical intervention by international structures in the settlement of this urgent humanitarian issue”, Stepanyan wrote.

I wouldn’t want Turkey to perceive Nemesis monument as unfriendly step, Speaker of Parliament Simonyan says in Ankara

Ani Basmajian

Save

Share

 14:00, 5 May 2023

YEREVAN, MAY 5, ARMENPRESS. Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan has said that he wouldn’t want Turkey to perceive the opening of the Nemesis monument in Yerevan as neither a foreign policy display nor an unfriendly step.

Simonyan made the comments during a press briefing in Ankara, where he is on a visit for the PABSEC meeting.

“I regret that the installation of the monument received such a reaction in Turkey. I’ve discussed this issue with my Turkish colleague. The decision [on installing the monument] was made in the local self-government body. And I wouldn’t want the installation of the monument to be perceived here as a display of Armenia’s state, foreign policy or an unfriendly step,” Simonyan told Turkish media.

He stressed that foreign policy is conducted by the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister in Armenia, and everyone has witnessed the decisions made on these levels in the past months.

“We must realize that reasons or occasions for deteriorating relations can always be found, if desired. I could’ve found a thousand different reasons for not traveling to Turkey. But I am here to tell the Turkish public that Armenia is ready for peace and normalization of relations without preconditions,” Simonyan said.

The Speaker of Parliament noted that Armenia is absolutely sincere in its aspirations and desires for normalizing relations. “If there is political will, a decision to establish relations, we must understand that this won’t be an easy road. But nevertheless, let’s move forward. I hope that our Turkish colleagues will also move forward and we will use this historic opportunity to open a new chapter for us and the region,” Simonyan said.

Turkey has closed its airspace to Armenian flights heading to a third destination in response to the unveiling of the Nemesis monument in Yerevan last week, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said on Wednesday.

Cavusoglu said Turkey would take further steps if the monument is not removed.

The direct flights from Armenia to Turkey are unaffected by the move.

However, Cavusoglu said that “VIP flights” will not be allowed. He said they made an exception for Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan, who is visiting Turkey for the PABSEC meeting, Anadolu reported. 

Nemesis was unveiled in Yerevan on April 25 to honor the participants of Operation Nemesis, a 1920s program of assassinations of Ottoman perpetrators of the Armenian Genocide.




RFE/RL Armenian Report – 04/21/2023

Ani Basmajian 
                                        Friday, 
Armenian Border Area ‘Still Occupied By Azeri Troops’
        • Ruzanna Stepanian
A new Azerbaijani army position outside the Armenian village of Tegh, March 31, 
2023.
Residents of an Armenian border village insisted on Friday that contrary to 
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s upbeat statements Azerbaijani troops have not 
withdrawn from any of their community lands occupied three weeks ago.
Azerbaijani army units redeployed on March 30 to more parts of the Lachin 
district sandwiched between Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, completing a change in 
the route of the Lachin corridor which began last August. Armenia’s National 
Security Service (NSS) said hours later that they advanced up to 300 meters into 
Armenian territory at five border locations adjacent to the village of Tegh.
Local government officials and farmers said Tegh lost a large part of its 
agricultural land and pastures. Some of them said that the Azerbaijani military 
made bigger territorial gains than is admitted by official Yerevan. They 
dismissed the NSS’s April 1 claims that the situation in that border area 
“improved significantly” as a result of negotiations held by Armenian and 
Azerbaijani officials.
Tensions there escalated on April 11 into a skirmish between Armenian and 
Azerbaijani forces which left at least seven soldiers from both sides dead.
“The Azerbaijanis haven’t retreated a single inch from Tegh’s lands,” one local 
resident told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Friday. “They are continuing 
fortification works.”
He was perplexed by Pashinian’s comments made on Thursday. The prime minister 
told reporters that the “problematic section” of the Armenian-Azerbaijani border 
around Tegh was 5 kilometers long and that the Armenian and Azerbaijani sides 
“ascertained” 1.4 kilometers of it after the deadly fighting.
“That means Armenian border guards are deployed at a certain distance from that 
border and Azerbaijani border guards are deployed at a certain distance from 
that border,” he said.
Pashinian did not clarify whether the Azerbaijani troops withdrew from that 
1.4-kilometer stretch or whether Yerevan does not consider it Armenian territory 
anymore as a result of the unofficial border delimitation.
“Again, they haven’t retreated a single inch,” countered the Tegh farmer, who 
did not want to be identified. “What has been ascertained?”
Tegh residents are still awaiting concrete actions by the Armenian government, 
he said, warning that their patience is running out.
The governor of Armenia’s Syunik province encompassing Tegh said earlier this 
week that the government will compensate villagers for the loss of their land 
holdings and main source of income.
The Armenian opposition blames Pashinian for the fresh territorial gains made by 
Azerbaijan. Opposition leaders say he should have ordered the Armenian army or 
border guards to take up positions along the Armenian side of the Tegh border 
section ahead of the Azerbaijani advance.
Armenia To Introduce Voluntary Military Service For Women
        • Susan Badalian
Armenia - Female military personnel.
The Armenian government announced on Friday plans to introduce voluntary 
military service for women.
A relevant bill approved by the government is part of its declared defense 
reforms and a gradual transition to a “professional army” promised by Prime 
Minister Nikol Pashinian.
Under the bill drafted by the Armenian Defense Ministry, the six-month service 
will become obligatory for young women once they are formally drafted by the 
country’s armed forces.
They will serve in military training units for six months and then have the 
option of becoming contract soldiers eligible for combat duty. Also, every 
female conscript will be paid 1 million drams ($2,600) after completing the 
service.
“It will be a normal service, not a stroll through barracks,” Pashinian said 
during a cabinet meeting in Yerevan.
The bill will likely be approved by the Armenian parliament. In that case, the 
military will be able to start enlisting women for the six-month duty already 
this fall.
The Armenian army already has female soldiers and officers within its ranks. 
Their current number is not revealed by the Defense Ministry.
It stood at over 1,400 in 2013 when Armenia’s two military academies began 
admitting women as cadets. The vast majority of the female personnel held 
clerical positions in the Defense Ministry, army detachments and other military 
structures.
There was also a growing number of women performing combat roles. They 
participated in the 2020 war in Nagorno-Karabakh and subsequent fighting on 
Armenia’s border with Azerbaijan. Five Armenian women were killed during last 
September’s large-scale border clashes.
Opposition Lawmaker Risks Losing Parliament Post
        • Gayane Saribekian
Armenia - Taguhi Tovmasian, chairwoman of the parliament committee on human 
rights, speaks during a news conference, October 10, 2022.
Nearly three dozen lawmakers from the ruling Civil Contract party have moved to 
dismiss their opposition colleague Taguhi Tovmasian as chairwoman of the 
Armenian parliament’s standing committee on human rights.
Tovmasian was forcibly removed, together with several other opposition deputies, 
from the parliament’s main auditorium on Thursday after occupying its rostrum in 
protest against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s latest statements on the 
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. She condemned the use of force, ordered by speaker 
Alen Simonian, as illegal.
Hovik Aghazarian, a controversial Civil Contract deputy, announced shortly after 
the incident that he is collecting signatures in support of stripping Tovmasian 
of her post. At least 28 other pro-government parliamentarians signed the 
initiative by Friday afternoon.
The ruling party’s parliamentary group is expected meet in the coming days to 
decide whether to oust Tovmasian.
The official rationale for the proposed dismissal is not Thursday’s incident but 
the April 4 meeting of the parliament committee on human rights which discussed 
two candidates for the then vacant post of Armenia’s human rights defender.
The meeting chaired by Tovmasian was marred by verbal abuse and threats shouted 
by some Civil Contract deputies at the candidate nominated by the Armenian 
opposition. One of those deputies publicly pledged to “cut the tongues and ears 
of anyone” who would make disparaging comments about the 2018 “velvet 
revolution” that brought Pashinian to power.
Despite a resulting uproar, law-enforcement authorities declined to investigate 
the threats. Nor did Pashinian’s party take any disciplinary action against its 
lawmakers involved in the ugly scenes.
The party is now considering instead ousting Tovmasian, who is affiliated with 
the opposition Pativ Unem bloc. Aghazarian blamed her for the chaotic committee 
meeting, saying that she should have interrupted it.
Tovmasian countered that she did so after the unusually aggressive behavior of 
Aghazarian’s pro-government colleagues. “There are no grounds for discussing my 
dismissal,” she said, accusing the authorities of putting “political pressure” 
on her.
Tovmasian, who is a former journalist and newspaper editor, is the last 
remaining oppositionist holding a leadership position in the National Assembly.
One of the parliament’s three deputy speakers, Ishkhan Saghatelian, and the 
chairman of the parliament committee on economic affairs, Vahe Hovsepian, were 
ousted last July after weeks of anti-government protests organized by their 
Hayastan alliance and Pativ Unem. Another Hayastan deputy, Armen Gevorgian, 
immediately resigned as chairman of a committee dealing with “Eurasian 
integration” in protest. Tovmasian pointedly declined to follow suit.
Reposted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2023 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

“We deceived ourselves” – Pashinyan on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh

Ani Basmajian
  • JAMnews
  • Yerevan

Pashinyan on peace treaty with Azerbaijan

“The signing of a peace treaty with Azerbaijan will become realistic if the two countries without ambiguity recognize each other’s territorial integrity and undertake not to advance territorial claims to each other either today or ever in the future,” Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said, introducing to parliament a report on the implementation of the government’s 2022 program.

JAMnews presents those parts of Pashinyan’s speech that dealing with Armenia’s relations with Azerbaijan and Turkey, and the status of Nagorno-Karabakh.

  • EU monitors tell Baku which section of Armenia’s border will be monitored
  • Scandal in Yerevan: Azerbaijani national team refused to participate in the European Championship
  • Criticism of Russia and the CSTO by the Armenian authorities

The Prime Minister said that, despite all the difficulties, Armenia has “the necessary optimism to talk about the future of the country, to build this future.” According to Pashinyan, the government bears “an exceptional responsibility” especially to those who doubt this possibility, and responsibility to the people can be expressed, in his opinion, only in establishing peace in the region, regulating relations with neighbors, in particular with Azerbaijan and Turkey.

Pashinyan said how realistic and feasible this is has several factors:

“First, the question arises to what extent the actions and policies of Azerbaijan will be oriented towards peace, since the world is not built alone. Second, and this is especially important after the 44-day war, if compromises are reached at the political and diplomatic level, how acceptable will these compromises be for the citizens of Armenia. And how much will citizens allow the practical fulfillment of these compromises, sometimes painful decisions?

Pashinyan did not specify what kind of compromises and painful decisions he was talking about.

He only stressed that the government should explain to citizens what happened and what is happening around Armenia: “When they understand this, they will accept it.”

Second Azerbaijani arrested in the case of two soldiers who strayed into the territory of Armenia in an apparent desertion

According to Pashinyan, peace is possible if Armenia strictly adheres to the following two provisions in its international relations “today and in the future”:

  • The Republic of Armenia recognizes its territory of 29,800 square kilometers, namely the territory of the Armenian SSR, on which it gained independence in 1991;
  • The RA has no territorial claims to any other country and never will.

He says that otherwise no one will come to terms with the fact that “we are developing in order to direct this development and strength against others – to expand the territories of our country.”

“Moreover, in this case, the agenda of other [countries] will include the issue of not only preventing our development, but even preventing the existence of our state. And in this situation, no one will help us,” Pashinyan said.

He again stressed the need to create international mechanisms to guarantee the observance of a possible peace agreement with Azerbaijan, as otherwise, the day after signing the agreement, “a war may break out or a new escalation may occur.” He also stressed the necessity of mechanisms for resolving disputes between the parties:

“If the parties fail to resolve the problems associated with the interpretation of the text of the agreement through direct negotiations, there should be an instance that will do this and the decision of which will be binding on the parties.”

Political scientist Gurgen Simonyan believes that “Azerbaijan undertook hostilities near the village of Tegh yesterday based on its aggressive policy.”

“After the 44-day war in Karabakh, Azerbaijan is in a state of euphoria and intends to take as much or everything as possible. This perception of Baku is fueled by the international situation,” Pashinyan said.

According to him, Azerbaijan is becoming or has become an energy and logistics crossroads, and its importance has increased both for Russia and for some Western countries. He believes that regional stability and peace can become the basis for a consensus between the West and Russia:

“If our region explodes again, at least in terms of energy, this could be a problem for both Russia and the West, with consequences of a different plan stemming from energy.”

He stated that he considers it realistic to sign a peace treaty with Azerbaijan. For this, in his opinion, it is necessary that both countries recognize the territorial integrity of each other and undertake not to present territorial claims to each other. Pashinyan recalled that he and Aliyev agreed on this last year in Prague, and then in Sochi:

“I want to confirm that the Republic of Armenia fully recognizes the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and we expect Azerbaijan to do the same by recognizing the entire territory of the Armenian SSR as the Republic of Armenia.”

He denied claims from Baku that Armenia refuses to recognize the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan during discussions on the text of the peace agreement:

“We can prove it. We ourselves proposed to attach maps of the Armenian and Azerbaijan SSR approved by the USSR to the treaty as the basis for the territorial integrity of the two countries.”

Dialogue between Armenia and Azerbaijan – An Armenian social activist discusses his determination to foster dialogue between the two nations

Pashinyan announced that during the negotiations on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, the principle of territorial integrity and the principle of self-determination were put side by side. He says that in this way realities were fixed that “we did not recognize, but, regardless of our recognition, they existed.”

The prime minister explained his idea as follows:

“The question was raised about the revision of the conditional status “A” of the beneficiary’s right to self-determination, which in theory could mean the revision of this status, and not its change or transformation into conditional status “B”, “A + 1” or “A-1”. And this happened without fixing the existing status “A”. If you raise the question of self-determination, then you are part of something, if you are not part of something, then either you have already determined, or you do not need self-determination.“

The Prime Minister came to the conclusion that the Armenian side “not only created, but also cemented” this reality with its own hands, after which it stated that it wants the status “B” for Nagorno-Karabakh, without publicly accepting the status “A”.

“We have deceived ourselves, the people of Armenia and the people of Nagorno-Karabakh by this. I say this not to blame anyone, but to say that until we recognize this obvious fact and reality, we will never have peace. Never”.

He once again stressed the importance of creating an international mechanism for negotiations and dialogue between Azerbaijan and the unrecognized NKR as a tool for ensuring the rights and security of Armenians.

President of the French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes intends to help NK with an humanitarian convoy

According to Pashinyan, an open border with Turkey will serve as the basis for development of “normal good neighborly relations.”

The Prime Minister believes that the probability has increased due to “supra-political, over-diplomatic factors.” He recalled that after the earthquake in Turkey in early February, Yerevan sent humanitarian aid and a rescue team from the Ministry of Emergency Situations, and the Armenian Foreign Minister went on a visit to Ankara.

“Dozens of Armenian flags flying in front of the Turkish Foreign Ministry are not only a ceremonial attribute, but also an amazing confirmation that hope can arise where despair reigns.”

Nikol Pashinyan wants to see the agreement on opening the border to third-country nationals and holders of diplomatic passports happen in the coming months:

“Of course, this may not happen if the new ideas and impressions that have arisen under the influence of humanitarian and good-neighbourly values eventually cool down and fade away, if their influence on political and diplomatic decisions becomes zero. But I hope that doesn’t happen.”


OSCE Chairman-in-Office Osmani concludes visit to Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia

Ani Basmajian
SKOPJE 

SKOPJE, 14 April 2023 — The OSCE Chairman-in-Office, Minister of Foreign Affairs of North Macedonia Bujar Osmani, concluded his visit to Georgia, Azerbaijan and Armenia.

The visit focused on existing security challenges and efforts towards sustainable peace, as well as strengthening co-operation between the OSCE and the three states in the South Caucasus region.

In Georgia, the OSCE Chairman met with President Salome Zourabichvili, Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, Chairman of the Parliament Shalva Papuashvili and other parliamentarians, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ilia Darchiashvili and State Minister for Reconciliation and Civic Equality Tea Akhvlediani.

During his talks in Tbilisi, Minister Osmani underlined that the OSCE will continue to support Georgia implement its commitments across the politico-military, environmental and economic, and human dimensions of security, which will contribute to internal reform processes in the country.

He also reiterated the OSCE’s continued efforts through the Geneva International Discussions and meetings of the related Incident Prevention and Response Mechanism in Ergneti.

“These channels and diplomatic processes must remain open, not only to avoid further escalation, but also to deal with the consequences of the 2008 war,” Chairman Osmani said.

“We support all pragmatic approaches to providing real results for the people affected by conflict. It is, after all, about people, and they count on us to deliver real results that allow them to live their lives in a state of peace and prosperity,” he added.

The OSCE Chairman-in-Office also held a visit, organised with the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia, to the administrative boundary line in Odzisi, and met with internally displaced persons in Tserovani. He also met with representatives of civil society.

During his visit to Azerbaijan, the OSCE Chairman met with President Ilham Aliyev, Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Speaker of the National Assembly Sahiba Gafarova. Discussions focused on the OSCE’s engagement towards lasting and sustainable peace, and finding solutions to outstanding issues between Azerbaijan and Armenia.

“The peaceful, comprehensive and sustainable settlement of the disagreements that afflict and concern Azerbaijanis and Armenians remains paramount. We stand behind any effort that provides positive dynamics in support of the full implementation of previously agreed measures, and the identification of new areas for agreement,” Osmani said. “I also encourage continued engagement between Armenia and Azerbaijan towards peace, and addressing crucial issues such as demarcation and delimitation and the opening of communication lines,” he stressed.

In Armenia, Minister Osmani met with President Vahagn Khachaturyan, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan and parliamentarians.

“I support any effort that leads to peace and all initiatives that facilitate dialogue, defuse tensions, boost trust and confidence, leading to normalisation of relations. We stand ready to continue our efforts through the OSCE’s existing mechanisms and structures, and new ideas and approaches to achieve these goals,” Minister Osmani said.

During his meeting with civil society and other stakeholders, Chairman Osmani highlighted the potential for increased project co-operation with the OSCE across all aspects of security.

Adana massacre of 1909: Long before the 1915 genocide of Armenian Christians, Ottomans had massacred thousands, over a mere rumour

Ani Basmajian
India –
  • Sanghamitra |

The Armenian Genocide, a series of systemic killings, and organised extermination of the minority population of Christians during the Ottoman Muslim rule in the region of Armenia is one of the most horrific state-sponsored genocidal events of the 20th century.

Usually, the Armenian Genocide refers to a series of massacres of the Armenian Christian population carried out by officials of the Ottoman Empire from 1915 onwards. The genocide began in 1915 and lasted until 1923, killing an estimated 1.5 million Armenian Christians, among other minority Christian groups.

However, years before 1915, a tragic event in Adana in April 1909 displays how the Ottoman Empire was prejudiced against the Christians under their rule and how an entire population was branded the enemy of the state, and subjected to tragic, horrific murder on an enormous scale.

The population of Armenian Christians under Ottoman rule in Western Asia has been subjected to multiple events of atrocities and massacres over centuries. In 1895, Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II ordered the killing of the Armenian population after Armenian groups demanded equal rights for minority Christians under the Islamic Ottoman regime.

Beginning in the fall of 1895, Hamid II’s officials and irregular militia started attacking Armenian villages and settlements and killing the general population with impunity. By the spring of 1896, an estimated 300,000 Armenians were killed. Rapes and forced conversions were rampant too. This was the initial stage in what was to be decades of violence and massacres for the Armenian people living under the Ottoman caliphate.

The large-scale violence against the Armenian population was a turning point, marking the beginning of a pattern of violence and persecution that would continue for decades, culminating in the Armenian Genocide of 1915.

The region of Adana (Adana Eyalet) was located in the region of southeastern Anatolia, which was then part of the Ottoman Empire. Around 1909, a rumour started reading that the Armenians living in the region are planning a revolt against the Ottoman Empire. Unlike the Hamiddian massacre, this event was carried forward by local Ottoman officials and Islamic groups, with motives of the social and economic devastation of Armenian and other minority groups.

Adana region in Ottoman Empire, Modern Turkey

The violence began on April 14, 1909, when Muslim mobs began attacking Armenian neighbourhoods in Adana and its surrounding areas, burning homes and businesses, and killing Armenian civilians. The violence quickly spread to other Christian communities, including the Greeks and Assyrians. The Ottoman authorities were either unable or unwilling to stop the violence, and in some cases, even encouraged it.

Over 1300 Assyrians and hundreds of Greeks and Syrian Christians were also killed. Beginning on April 14, Muslim mobs instigated and aided by Islamic clerics and Ottoman officials, started raiding villages and killing anyone and everyone from the minority communities.

Images of devastation and torture in the Adana massacre in 1909, via @ResearchWing and @HistoryfyToday

An estimated 20,000 to 30,000 Armenians and hundreds of Greeks and Assyrians were rounded up, tortured, raped and killed. People were carved with knives and shops and homes were gutted in the fire.

The massacre was fuelled by a combination of factors. Religious intolerance against minority Christians, economic competition, and Ottoman government policies all played a role. The Ottoman Empire was in a state of decline, and the rise of fanaticism mixed with ‘nationalist’ sentiments towards the Empire was fuelling hatred against Christians who were perceived as being sympathetic towards the Russian State.

Socio-economic differences between the Muslim Turks and Armenians were also one of the reasons. Though the general Armenian population was not particularly rich, some Armenian Christians had found success. This was used as a trigger to incite the Muslim mobs against the population, branding the Armenians as traitors of the Ottoman Empire because of their religion.

In the months prior to the massacre, rumours began to circulate that Armenians were plotting to take over the Ottoman Empire with the support of European powers. These rumours were spread by Ottoman officials and Muslim leaders, who used them to stoke fears and fuel anti-Armenian sentiment. Even after the April 14 massacres, Ottoman officials and soldiers kept spreading the claims that it was the Armenians who had attacked Muslims.

The Committee of Union and Progress, or CUP, was a political party that emerged in the late 19th century in the Ottoman Empire, on the promise of a centralized and modernized Ottoman state. In the years before 1909, the CUP had gained significant influence in the Ottoman government, with many of its members holding key positions in the Empire. Anti-Armenian sentiment often formed a key rhetoric of the CUP.

It is said that many CUP members were actively and directly involved in the Armenian massacre, some members even helping to fuel the rumours that the Armenians are plotting to overthrow the Ottomans.

The Ottoman Empire, whose officials and soldiers were active and willing perpetrators of large-scale violence against minority Christian groups, never acknowledged their roles. Despite reports of widespread atrocities against Armenian civilians, Ottoman officials never took any decisive action to stop the massacre. As the violence continued unabated and got widely reported, the Ottoman government finally sent troops to stop the violence, but that proved to be futile too. Because they were mostly Ottoman Muslim troops who often participated in the violence against minorities.

A book by Rouben Paul Adalian mentions that a total of 24 churches, 16 schools, 232 houses, 30 hotels, 2 plants, 1429 cottages, 253 farms, 523 shops, 23 mills and many other public buildings were burnt in Adana alone.

Even an investigation carried out by the Ottoman government after the massacre was found to be horribly biased against the Armenians. No meaningful steps were taken to prevent similar incidents in the future and the perpetrators were never brought to justice. Most of the officials involved went unpunished. Hence, the massacre only paved the way for future atrocities at a grander scale against the Armenians, eventually leading to the 1915 genocide that killed millions of them.

The remnants of the hatred and legacy of violence between the two ethnic groups continue even today, in the form of the ongoing conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, and Turkey’s open support to Azerbaijan against the Armenians.

Armenpress: No territorial losses in latest unprovoked Azeri attack, says Armenian military

Ani Basmajian

Save

Share

 09:32,

YEREVAN, APRIL 12, ARMENPRESS. The situation on the frontline was “relatively stable” as of 08:00, April 12, the Armenian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

The Armenian military did not lose any positions in the April 11 Azerbaijani attack, it added.

No “significant ceasefire violations” by the Azerbaijani forces were recorded overnight, the ministry said.

“No significant ceasefire violations by the adversary were recorded overnight. As of 08:00, the situation on the frontline remains relatively stable. The Armenian side doesn’t have any positional losses as a result of the April 11 Azerbaijani provocation. As of this moment there is no change in the health condition of the servicemen who were wounded in the April 11 Azerbaijani provocation (three of the six servicemen are in satisfactory condition, while the other three are in moderate, serious and critical condition),” the Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

On April 11, Armenian troops carrying out engineering works near the village of Tegh close to the border with Azerbaijan came under heavy gunfire in an unprovoked attack. Four Armenian soldiers were killed and six wounded.