Author: Babajanian Karo

‘PEACEFUL RESOLUTION OF KARABAKH CONFLICT COULD BRING MANY BENEFITS TO EU’

news.az
Nov 28 2011
Azerbaijan

News.Az interviews Azer Babayev, Doctor of Political Science, Research
Fellow at the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF).

EU has recently intensified efforts in Karabakh settlement. Do you
think that EU’s possible mediation in Karabakh settlement will promote
progress in settlement of this conflict?

I think, any strong commitment of the EU could be certainly
a substantial contribution to a peaceful resolution of the
Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict. This is primarily because the EU enjoys
a high credibility as “honest broker” and is considered by the both
conflict parties to be more trustworthy than Russia or even the US –
the most important mediators in the negotiation process at the present
point of time. However, I don’t see such a will or capacity on EU’s
side yet, particularly as Brussels is preoccupied with itself due
the euro crisis nowadays.

What political dividends can EU expect, if it manages to make
achievements in Karabakh conflict?

A peaceful resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict could bring many
benefits to the EU. Primarily, the South Caucasus is a geostrategically
very important region, located in the immediate vicinity of the
EU. Thereby, the EU has important security and stability interests
with regard to this region. Moreover, Azerbaijan, the – particularly
due to its energy resources – most important country of the region,
is directly affected by this conflict. It is in the EU’s interest that
the energy resources of the Caspian Sea region find direct access to
the international market without any problem.

And South Caucasus, especially Azerbaijan without the dangerous
Karabakh conflict can offer the best conditions for such a purpose
and possibility.

What can EU offer for Azerbaijan and Armenia to be constructive in
negotiation process?

The most powerful incentive mechanism of the EU is its accession
offer. But it is not realistic that Brussels would offer Azerbaijan
and Armenia a membership perspective in a short or middle term. The
EU can, however, offer both countries in the near future a privileged
partnership on the condition of rapid progress in a peaceful conflict
resolution.

Does Azerbaijan have the opportunity to use its energy resources for
Europe to take an unbiased stance in Karabakh settlement?

Azerbaijan’s energy resources are the best political leverage of
its foreign policy. In particular, Baku can use it in the bilateral
relations with the EU, especially in the sense that Brussels commits
itself to do more for a just and peaceful resolution of the conflict.

As is well known, at the present time, Brussels tries – by means of
the Nabucco pipeline project, backed by several European Union states
– to lessen EU dependence on Russian energy in the near future. And
Azerbaijan is considered to be one of the main suppliers for this
pipeline.

Can Serzh Sargsyan’s re-election as Armenian president in 2012 promote
his constructive stance in negotiation process around Karabakh?

This is a highly hypothetical question. I can only offer a guess:
during his last term as Armenian President, Sargsyan should envisage a
rapid conflict resolution. The Armenian leadership is certainly aware
that the labile state of ‘Neither-War-Nor-Peace’ being perceived as
highly unjust by Azerbaijan cannot be permanent. What is more: the
longer a robust peace agreement is postponed, the more likely will
be the escalation of the conflict into a new war. And that cannot be
in anybody’s interest.

SPIRITUAL LEADERS OF RUSSIA, ARMENIA AND AZERBAIJAN URGE TO WITHDRAW SNIPERS FROM THE FRONT LINES

AzeriReport.com

Nov 28 2011

YEREVAN. November 28, 2011: At a trilateral meeting today, Catholicos
of Armenians Karekin II, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill,
and the head of the Spiritual Administration of Caucasian Muslims
Sheikh-ul-Islam Pashazade adopted a joint statement expressing their
support for the peaceful settlement of Mountainous Garabagh conflict.

Patriarch Kirill said the parties consider it necessary to resolve the
problem peacefully. He informed that in addition to the previously
reached agreement on a prisoner exchange, during today’s meeting
the religious leaders decided to call on the withdrawal of snipers
from the contact line. The Armenian side has raised the question
on the withdrawal of snipers repeatedly, however, the Azerbaijani
side stated that it is necessary to decide the question in general,
and not limit it to the withdrawal of snipers (Turan-ArmInfo).

AZERBAIJANI DEFENSE MINISTRY EXPRESSES ATTITUDE TOWARDS ARMENIAN ARMED FORCES’ EXERCISES IN OCCUPIED AZERBAIJANI TERRITORIES

Trend
Nov 27 2011
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry has expressed its attitude towards
the Armenian Armed Forces’ exercises in the occupied Azerbaijani
territories. Conducting such exercises by undisciplined army will
not change anything, Azerbaijani Defense Ministry Deputy Spokesman
Teymur Abdullayev told Trend on Saturday.

“What will be changed whether undisciplined army will or will not
conduct exercises with weak material and technical base and old
weapons? The more they conduct military exercises and parades, the
more they show the weakness of their army,” Abdullayev said.

The Armenians are conducting military exercises using heavy artillery
and armored vehicles on the occupied Azerbaijani territories, several
media outlets reported.

The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988
when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992,
including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and 7 surrounding districts.

Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The
co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group – Russia, France, and the U.S. –
are currently holding the peace negotiations.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council’s four
resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the
surrounding regions.

AZERBAIJANI ARMY KILLED 8 ARMENIAN SERVICEMEN ON KARABAKH FRONTLINE

Milaz.info

Nov 28 2011
Azerbaijan

In order to prevent panic, Armenian side deployed contract personnel
and snipers throughout the frontline and also established rearward
police posts to prevent the soldiers from leaving their posts.

In order to prevent panic, Armenian side deployed contract personnel
and snipers throughout the frontline and also established rearward
police posts to prevent the soldiers from leaving their posts.

Baku – APA. In order to prevent panic, Armenian Armed Forces and the
armed units of the separatist regime in Nagorno Karabakh are attempting
to hide from the public the recent losses on the line of contact and
spread misinformation about the losses of the Azerbaijani Armed Forces.

The military sources told APA that 8 Armenian servicemen were killed as
a result of the operations against the Armenian Army, which violated
the ceasefire along all directions of the line of contact over the
past week. Armenians’ losses were confirmed in the reports sent to the
center through their communication facilities. One Azerbaijani soldier
was killed in the battles and the Defense Ministry made it public.

“Two soldiers of the Armenian Army were killed on November 19-20. It
is clearly seen on the Armenian news websites how these losses caused
panic in the Armenian public. The Armenian side, in accordance with
its traditional military information policy, attempts to hide the mass
losses. It is not difficult to publicize the names of these soldiers.

It should be noted that two Armenian soldiers were killed within an
hour on November 25. The surname of one of them is Arutunyan. Armenian
NGOs may demand from their military hospitals the information about
these losses,” says the source.

Armenians’ losses happened as a result of the violation of ceasefire by
them. In response to the violation of ceasefire in various directions
of Karabakh frontline, Azerbaijani servicemen took measures in
accordance with the instructions. 8 Armenian servicemen were killed
as the soldiers of Azerbaijani Army fired accurately. These happenings
cause panic of the Armenian armed units.

In order to eliminate this situation and to change moral-psychological
condition among the soldiers, the opposite side deployed contract
personnel and snipers throughout the frontline. They also established
rearward police posts to prevent the soldiers from leaving their posts.

“It would be better if Armenian leadership answered to own people for
young men, whose lives it destroyed bringing them from the country’s
different regions and leaving under the bullets in the occupied
Azerbaijani territories. More than 100 soldiers of the Armenian army
were killed in the frontline this year. Sargsyan and defense minister
Ohanyan have responsibility for them”, the source added.

According to the report, despondence among the personnel of the
Armenian army divisions deployed in Karabakh and other directions
of frontline is increasing. According to the reports obtained via
different channels, many of the contractors reject the service
submitting written applications.

The source told APA that recently recorded phone conversations of
the Armenian divisions in Karabakh frontline showed that there were
incidents between the Armenian and Karabakh militants and Armenians
came from Armenia called each other “not to die for the Karabakh
Armenians”.

In order to prevent the protest and panic among the public community
caused by the recent developments, Armenian Defense Ministry brought
some “military experts” like David Jamalyan, Hrant Melik-Shahnazaryan,
Artsrun Ovannisyan into action. These military experts are publishing
articles with same scenario in different publications aiming to
curtain their losses and to put an end to public anxiety.

PM’S DERSIM APOLOGY TO SPUR NEW LOOK AT REPUBLIC’S DARK DAYS

Today’s Zaman

Nov 27 2011
Turkey

In the wake of Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan’s unprecedented
apology for the 1937 Dersim Massacres last week, rights groups and
historians say that now is the time for igniting public debate over
the darkest chapters of Republican history.

The Wednesday apology, which was the culmination of a debate which
erupted earlier this month in the ranks of the opposition Republican
People’s Party (CHP), responded to growing calls to “face up to
the historical legacy of Dersim” among a torrent of major Turkish
politicians and intellectuals.

“Erdogan’s apology is the first time that these issues have been openly
discussed and acknowledged at the state level,” said Ferhat Kentel,
sociologist a Å~^ehir University. “This is one of the most important
steps yet on the path to facing the worst moments of Turkey’s past.”

Erdogan apologized on Wednesday for the state killings of 13,806
people in the southeastern town of Dersim in 1937, stating that
“Dersim is among the most tragic events in our recent history. It is
a disaster that should now be questioned with courage.” It was the
first time the Turkish state has offered a public apology to redress
the events of its past.

Just as striking as the apology was the suddenness with which public
debate produced it. The full state apology came just two weeks after
CHP deputy Huseyin Aygun first called on the state and his party to
recognize the Dersim massacres in an interview with Sunday’s Zaman.

Aygun, who claims that the Dersim massacre was planned for years by
high state authorities, including Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, infuriated
many within CHP ranks but earned a torrent of support among
intellectuals and politicians looking for recognition of the massacre.

The willingness of society and the state to so quickly confront Dersim
now raises the question of whether a powerful precedent has been set.

“Apologizing for the Dersim tragedy is a historic development in the
history of republic. It has historic meaning,” said Alevi writer and
chairman of the Confrontation with the Past Association Cafer Solgun.

Speaking to Sunday’s Zaman on Thursday, Solgun stated that the
apology may provide an important opportunity to petition for more than
official recognition of the Dersim incident. “As Dersim activists,
we asked the state to only apologize. That was our priority.

We now got it. We will now press for other requests from the state.

Our second demand is to change the name of Tunceli back to Dersim.

Then state must research the scale of the massacre, find the remains
of those who were killed. The families of the dead demand this.”

Solgun’s calls for further state confrontation with Dersim seemed
far from wishful thinking after AK Party Deputy Mehmet Metiner’s own
suggestion this week that the government go ahead with such a name
swap, restoring historic namesake of “Dersim” to the region that was
the scene of the massacres.

The momentum which Solgun claims has been won in the Dersim case
raises the question of how the state will pursue calls to confront
other events which have faced state silence or outright denial for
decades. “One absolutely cannot say that early history of this nation
is free of crimes or without its secrets. In this period so many
terrible things happened. We are today faced with an Armenian, Greek,
Kurdish, even an Islamic question, stormy chapters in this country’s
past that we must face,” says Sociologist and Taraf Columnist Ferhat
Kentel. It will be the willingness to investigate such questions,
says Kentel, which will prove the seriousness of Deputy Prime Minister
Bulent Arınc’s promise earlier this week to investigate the past
“even if this will be painful for us.”

According to minority rights activist Hasan Saltık, there is
an encouraging likelihood that Dersim will act as precedent for
further calls on the state to change its narrative about past
events. Saltık imagines a state inquiry in the near future for the
notorious “Independence Tribunals,” arbitrary revolutionary courts
established by Ankara in the 1920s to eliminate political enemies
and war deserters. “Hundreds of dissidents were executed in those
tribunals without a fair trial. It is possible to see an incredible
record of violation of law in the first decades of the republic at
a time a nation-building process took momentum,” Saltık said. The
activist also believes that other incidents similar to the Dersim
massacre, specifically the killings of Alevis by ultra nationalists
and extremists in the MaraÅ~_, Corum and Sivas incidents of the 1970s
and 1980s or the state sponsored killings in Turkey’s East throughout
the 1990s are likely subjects of state investigation.

Experts say that such retelling of Turkish history must not stop
short of the early Turkish state’s most chilling excesses, including
the 1942 wealth tax which intentionally extorted non-Muslims of their
wealth and forced over 30,000 Jews to emigrate, or the 1955 Ä°stanbul
pogrom in which mobs incited by the government killed over a dozen and
precipitated the flight of Ä°stanbul’s Greeks. Such events, however,
will take even more time to face, says Bilgi University sociologist
Ayhan Aktar. “At the moment I don’t expect a dialogue on certain
events, including the deportations or the Armenian killings. But what
we have seen has been a very good beginning,” Aktar said in a Friday
interview with Sunday’s Zaman.

“Turkey has two attitudes in relation to history — one is a defensive,
state history. But you also have another, unofficial story which
can come to the fore — people talk about these events and there is
a process of collective soul searching. For instance, in Erzurum,
people are of course talking about happened to Armenians in 1915.”

Coming face to face with events such as the 1915 Armenian massacres,
Aktar asserts, will necessitate ending the state’s denial of historical
realities and confronting, rather than erasing, the collective memory
of Turkey’s bitterest chapters. Aktar believes that this process begins
with the government. “When the prime minister challenges the state
history, people will be more open, more courageous to talk about what
happened. In this sense, it begins with the government,” says Aktar.

Sociologist Kentel, meanwhile, says that the government must catch up
with the independent effort to challenge the secretive traditions of
the state. “It would be wrong to say that the apology was the “first
step” in challenging the traditions of the past. We have already
seen the outcry and support in the case of Hrant Dink’s murder — we
are already moving to rewrite this country’s history,” Kentel stated,
referring to the campaign for justice in the wake of Armenian newspaper
editor Hrant Dink’s murder by ultranationalists in 2007.

Both Kentel and Aktar admit they have their reservations about the
prime minister’s apology. “There is no doubt there is a political
reason behind his acts. He wants to attack Kemalism,” Kentel stated.

But such politics, the sociologists say, can’t cheapen the significance
of his statement. “I don’t think this contradicts the sincerity of
the apology. It has symbolic importance and value, it is the start
of something.”

SAMVEL TER-SAHAKYAN BECOMES WORLD CHAMPION

Panorama
Nov 28 2011
Armenia

Samvel Ter-Sahakyan drew with Debashis in the last, 9th round, U18
group, at the World Youth Chess Championships in Caldas Novas, Brazil.

Samvel became world champion, scoring 8 points. Fedoseev and Debashis
were one point behind him and finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively.

Robert Aghasaryan drew with Rosen and finished 14th with 6 points.

In U16 group, Hovhannes Gabuzyan beat Kadric and Karen H. Grigoryan
lost to Pouya. Gabuzyan finished 4th with 6.5 points and Grigoryan
– 14th with 6 points.

ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTRY: ISRAEL DOES NOT RECOGNIZE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Vestnik Kavkaza
Nov 28 2011
Russia

Israeli Foreign Ministry: Israel does not recognize Armenian genocide
Israel does not recognize the Armenian genocide, APA reports, quoting
Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon. “We can not break relations
with Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan is our strategic partner in the Islamic
world. We can not break the relationship for the sake of events a
century ago,” the deputy minister said.

Ayalon said that the Israeli government is against populist decisions
and does not accept such behavior.

However, the question of the Armenian genocide might be discussed in
the Committee of Education, Culture and Sport.

WHAT HINDERS TOURISM DEVELOPMENT IN ARMENIA?

news.am
Nov 28 2011
Armenia

YEREVAN. – Even though Armenia is a popular tourist destination,
its tour packages are still more expensive than those for the other
regional tourism centers, Noyan Tour tourism agency’s assistant
manager Sophie Sargsyan stated during a press conference on Monday.

As per the businesswoman, the ski season is beginning and numerous
tourists, and primarily from Russia, are arriving in Armenia for this
reason. But a one-week tour package for two costs US$ 1,000, in the
case when this is close to $600 in Georgia. The Turkish offers are
cheaper, too. According to Sargsyan, the hotel and food costs are
the main reason for this expensiveness.

In his turn, Rumea Company’s President Ruben Grigoryan noted that the
mentality likewise hinders tourism development. “We like saying we
are a hospitable nation, but the number-one problem is education,”
he said. The other obstacle, as maintained by Grigoryan, is the
insufficient infrastructures. They prefer building 4-5-star expensive
hotels, in the case when the tourists prefer simple and affordable
hotel rooms. There is also a lack of restrooms on the roads, and
therefore, in Grigoryan’s view, the state must demand from the gas
stations to install restrooms.

But according to Ruben Grigoryan, despite the obstacles, tourism is
becoming more active in Armenia. In the case when the tourism season
used to end in October, in the previous years, the hotels are still
full as of this November.

DES DONS POUR LA REGION DU HAUT-KARABAGH
Laetitia

armenews.com
lundi 28 novembre 2011

Lors d’une emission annuelle pour le telethon a Los Angeles jeudi
soir et vendredi matin, un organisme pan-armenien a recu environ
12,3 millions de dollars de dons qui seront principalement investis
pour la reconstruction du reseau de distribution d’eau dans la region
du Haut-Karabagh.

Le fonds ” Hayastan ” base a Erevan a declare que le chiffre final
pourrait s’averer etre plus eleve après avoir calcule le total des
dons recus par les Armeniens qui vivent aux Etats-Unis et ailleurs
dans le monde.

Hasmik Grigorian, le porte-parole de Hayastan, a affirme que l’argent
sera utilise pour ameliorer l’approvisionnement en eau potable dans
les villages du Karabagh et pour mettre en ~uvre plusieurs projets
d’infrastructures en Armenie.

” Selon nos estimations, environ 27.000 personnes ont eu l’eau
courante depuis l’annee dernière, a declare Grigorian. Mais il y a
des dizaines de milliers d’autres qui ont encore des problèmes avec
l’accès a l’eau potable. ”

Huit millions de dollars ont ete donnes par des hommes d’affaires
russo-armeniens lors d’un gala de collecte de fonds a Moscou en
presence du President Serge Sarkissian. Ce dernier participera a un
autre gala fin decembre a Moscou.

” Si nous prenons en compte le fait que la somme du dernier telethon
ne comprenne pas les resultats du prochain gala, alors nous pouvons
conclure qu’il depasse le resultat du Telethon de l’annee dernière
de 2 millions de dollars, ” a declare Grigorian.

Hayastan a souleve un record de 35 millions de dollars en 2008.

L’homme d’affaires, Samuel Karapetian, a fait un don de 15 millions
de dollars.

Depuis 1992, la region du Karabagh a ete beneficiaire de près de 216
000 000 de dollars pour des projets de developpement finances par
Hayastan. Cela comprend la construction d’environ 500 kilomètres de
routes, des centaines d’appartements et de maisons et de dizaines
d’ecoles, crèches et centres de soins.

Boston Globe, MA
Nov 27 2011

After centuries, Bethlehem church to get new roof

By Matti Friedman
Associated Press / November 27, 2011

BETHLEHEM, West Bank – Preparations for a long-needed renovation of the
1,500-year-old Church of the Nativity are moving ahead in Bethlehem,
the town of Jesus’ birth, in the face of political and religious
conflicts that have kept one of Christendom’s holiest sites in a state
of decay for centuries.

The first and most urgent part of the renovation, initiated by the
Palestinian government in the West Bank, is meant to replace the
building’s roof. Ancient wooden beams pose a danger to visitors,
officials say, and leaks have already ruined many of the church’s
priceless mosaics and paintings.

If the repairs go ahead as planned next year, it will be the first
time the crumbling basilica has seen major renovation work in more
than a century and a half.

Altering a building like the Church of the Nativity, built 1,500 years
ago on the site of a church 200 years older than that, is never a
simple affair. The building is shared by three Christian sects —
Catholics, Greek Orthodox and Armenians — who have traditionally
viewed each other with suspicion and are wary of upsetting the brittle
status quo that governs the site.

To repair a part of the church is to own it, according to accepted
practice, meaning that letting other sects undertake renovations or
pay for them could allow one to gain ground at another’s expense.

The resulting paralysis and disrepair has been a recurring theme at the church.

“In the roof the timbers which were constructed in ancient times are
rotting, and this structure is falling daily into ruin,” wrote one
visitor. That was in 1461.

Some measure of the complications involved in a renovation of this
type can be found in the Nativity’s similarly ancient and fractious
sister church, the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem. When a 1927 earthquake
badly damaged that building, it took the rival sects more than three
decades to agree to major repairs and another three to complete them.

Today, the increasingly dire state of the Nativity’s roof and the
intervention of an external player in the form of the Palestinian
Authority — which has circumvented the old rivalries and allowed all
to save face — has led the three churches to agree to a renovation to
be arranged and funded by the Palestinian government and international
donors.

The Palestinian Authority, the Western-backed government that wields
limited control in the West Bank under Israel’s overall control, sees
the church as its premier tourist attraction, with 2 million foreign
visitors last year.

The PA and its president, Mahmoud Abbas, are eager to win recognition
for the basilica from UNESCO as a world heritage site, but an earlier
application was not accepted because UNESCO did not consider the
Palestinian government a state. That changed last month, when, in a
controversial decision that triggered a funding cutoff by the United
States, the U.N.’s cultural arm decided to grant recognition.

The Palestinians are now hoping their application will be approved.
The renovation is motivated, in part, by a desire on their part to
prove they are responsible stewards of sites of global importance.

“Our president has issued a decree to restore the roof and to prepare
for the restoration of the church on behalf of the three churches and
in coordination with the three churches, which obviously cannot do it
on their own,” said Khouloud Daibes, the Palestinian tourism minister.

A high-tech survey by experts from Canada, Italy and elsewhere ended
earlier this year. Palestinian officials hope the three churches will
sign off on the plans and that the renovation itself will begin in
2012. It is expected to cost between $10 and $15 million.

The roof is in such poor condition that there is a “risk of collapsing
beams within the wooden structure which could hurt people inside the
church,” said Issam Juha of the Centre for Cultural Heritage
Preservation, one of the official Palestinian bodies in charge of the
UNESCO application.

“We recognize that this is a necessity that goes beyond our different
claims, and that this has to be done,” said Father Athanasius, the
Roman Catholic clergyman in charge of relations with other sects at
shared sites in the Holy Land.

Archbishop Aris Shirvanian of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem
said his church supported the plan, along with the other churches. A
Greek Orthodox representative did not respond to requests for comment.

To someone standing on the worn marble floors of the basilica amid
cassocked monks and busloads of tourists and looking upward, the roof
appears as an aging latticework of wooden beams, some of them visibly
warped.

The roof was first built, along with the rest of the basilica, by the
Byzantine emperor Justinian in the 6th century A.D. following the
destruction of the original church built on the site of the grotto
where Jesus was believed to have been born. Some of Justinian’s
massive wooden beams are still in use.

In 1480, with Bethlehem under Muslim rule and the roof disintegrating,
permission was granted to replace it. Philip, Duke of Burgundy, sent
craftsmen, wood and iron. King Edward IV of England sent lead, and the
Doge of Venice provided ships. Major work was carried out again two
centuries later.

When the British controlled the Holy Land between 1917 and 1948, they
recognized the urgency of replacing the roof but simply could not
navigate the explosive rivalries between the sects in the church,
traditionally backed by powers like France and Russia.

In the mid-1800s the tensions had become so fierce that Russian Czar
Nicholas I actually deployed troops along the Danube to threaten a
Turkish sultan who had been favoring the Catholics over the Orthodox.

The British managed only small repairs. The same went for the
Jordanians, who ruled Bethlehem from 1948 to 1967, and for the
Israelis, who captured the West Bank from the Jordanians and turned
the city over to the Palestinian Authority in the 1990s.

A UNESCO report in 1997 found that because of water leaking from the
roof, most of the mosaics and paintings, some dating from Byzantine
times, had been “damaged beyond repair.”

In the similar case of the renovation of the Holy Sepulcher in
Jerusalem, the sects put aside their differences only when they
realized that their holy building was in danger of collapse, said
Raymond Cohen of Hebrew University in Jerusalem, an international
relations professor who wrote a book about that renovation project.
There was also a measure of judicious outside intervention by a
Jordanian official at the right time, he said.

Something similar appears to have happened here.

“The paradox is that everyone needs to repair it, but they can’t
agree,” Cohen said. “When the place is about to fall down, it focusses
the mind.”