Author: Babajanian Karo

40 KILLED IN TURKEY IN PRO-KOBANI PROTESTS

Fri Oct 17, 2014 10:36AM GMT

Related Interviews:

Turkey ‘allowing ISIL to attack Kobani’

Related Viewpoints:

Defending Kobani: Turkey’s hesitation

The number of Turkish people killed in demonstrations in support of
the Kurds fighting the ISIL in the Syrian Kurdish city of Kobani has
neared 40.

Turkey has been gripped by a series of protests over the past week,
a number of which turned violent in different parts of the country
after security forces conducted a bloody crackdown on the protesters.

Turkey continues to block any delivery of military, medical or
humanitarian assistance into Kobani where the ISIL terrorists are
feared to be aiming at massive bloodletting.

Analysts say Ankara, having already won the US green light, plans to
let the terrorists seize the Kurdish town of Kobani before sending
tanks and troops to fight them in a bid to capture and possibly annex
the Syrian territory.

Meanwhile, Press TV has learned that Washington has moved its base
from Jordan to Turkey to train radical extremists who are fighting
the Syrian government.

On Thursday, Idriss Nassan, the deputy head of Kobani’s foreign
relations committee, called for pressuring the Turkish government to
open its borders to volunteers and allow delivery of ammunition for
the fighters.

Kobani and its surroundings have been under attack since mid-September,
with the ISIL militants capturing dozens of nearby Kurdish villages.

The ISIL terror operations have forced tens of thousands of Syrian
Kurds to flee into Turkey, which is a stone’s throw from Kobani.

ASH/NN/KA

TURKEY HAS A KEY ROLE IN ACTIVITIES OF ISLAMIC STATE: NAREK GALSTYAN

12:45, 17 October, 2014

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 17, ARMENPRESS: Chairman of the Social Democrat
Hunchakian Party Narek Galstyan considers the response of the
international community to the activities of “Islamic State” terrorist
group as hypocrisy.

Narek Galstyan told Armenpress that in the 21st century we witness
almost the same reality that existed in late 19th century and in
early 20th century. “It is just the culmination of disgrace when in
broad daylight genocide of Yezidi people is taking place and the
international community responds only after months, when the USA
and France start air strikes at the posts of the Islamic State,”
he stressed.

Chairman of the Social Democrat Hunchakian Party said that Armenians
too have suffered from the activities of the Islamic State, reminding
that the terrorists exploded Deir ez-Zor’s Armenian Holy Martyrs
Church, which was a spiritual and cultural value for us.

“The painful is that beyond the Islamic State the handwriting of
the official Ankara, Turkey is clearly seen, and the international
community does not take a single step to suppress those cannibals
of Turkey and Islamic State, for who the human life has no value,”
underlined Narek Galstyan.

APRES UN MOIS DE COMBATS, LES KURDES RESISTENT TOUJOURS A KOBANE

SYRIE

Un mois après le debut de l’offensive du groupe Etat islamique sur
Kobane, les combattants kurdes resistent toujours, aides par les
frappes de la coalition, mais les Etats-Unis se montrent davantage
preoccupes par les “avancees importantes” des jihadistes en Irak.

Le sort de Kobane, troisième ville kurde de Syrie frontalière de la
Turquie devenue dans le monde entier le symbole de la lutte contre
l’EI, reste totalement incertain après 30 jours de combats acharnes.

Les jihadistes y ont penetre jusqu’au centre et occupe jusqu’a
la moitie de la ville, mais les combattants kurdes semblent avoir
repris cette semaine du terrain perdu grâce a l’intensification des
bombardements aeriens.

Les combattants des YPG (Unites de protection du peuple), principale
milice armee kurde de Syrie, ont ainsi “progresse dans l’est et dans
le sud-est de la ville”, a indique jeudi un responsable kurde local,
Idriss Nassen.

De telles affirmations sont impossibles a verifier en l’absence
d’observateurs independants et de journalistes a Kobane. L’EI ne
communique pas sur l’evolution de ses operations.

Le responsable kurde a insiste sur le fort impact des raids aeriens
de la coalition militaire multinationale, qui frappe l’EI “de facon
plus efficace ces derniers jours” selon lui.

Les Etats-Unis ont annonce avoir bombarde les positions de l’EI dans
et autour de Kobane a dix-huit reprises mardi et mercredi, provoquant
la mort de “plusieurs centaines” de ses combattants.

Mais “Kobane pourrait encore tomber”, a mis en garde le porte-parole
du Pentagone, le contre-amiral John Kirby.

Le coordonnateur de la coalition, le general americain a la retraite
John Allen, a egalement averti que l’option militaire et les raids
aeriens ne suffiraient pas pour terrasser l’EI. Les frappes a elles
seules ne produisent “ni gagnants, ni perdants”, selon lui.

662 morts en un mois –

En un mois, “la bataille de Kobane” a provoque la mort de 662
personnes, selon un decompte de l’Observatoire syrien des droits de
l’Homme (OSDH) qui ne prend cependant pas en compte les victimes des
frappes aeriennes.

L’EI y a perdu 374 combattants, les YPG 258, tandis que dix autres
combattants Kurdes et vingt civils ont ete tues au cours des combats.

La bataille a debute le 16 septembre lorsque l’EI, qui a proclame un
“califat” sur les vastes regions qu’il contrôle a cheval sur la Syrie
et l’Irak, a lance une offensive pour conquerir la troisième ville
kurde de Syrie, situee a la frontière avec la Turquie.

Depuis, la region de Kobane s’est videe de ses habitants : plus de
300.000 personnes ont fui, dont plus de 200.000 en Turquie et des
milliers en Irak, selon les estimations.

‘Urgence’ en Irak –

Si les Etats-Unis considèrent avant tout Kobane comme une operation
“humanitaire” et non “strategique”, ils se montrent davantage
preoccupes par l’evolution en Irak.

“L’urgence en Irak est clairement en ce moment notre principale
preoccupation”, a affirme le general Allen, en evoquant la situation
militaire mais aussi les problèmes politiques a Bagdad.

Il a reconnu qu'”evidemment, l’EI avait realise des avancees
importantes en Irak”, notamment dans la province occidentale d’Al-Anbar
que les jihadistes sunnites tentent de contrôler complètement.

L’armee irakienne, epaulee par des tribus, a cependant reussi mercredi
a repousser un assaut de l’EI contre Ramadi, chef-lieu d’Al-Anbar.

Cette province majoritairement sunnite est un objectif majeur pour les
jihadistes qui veulent prendre le contrôle des zones qui lui echappent
encore. Ils la contrôleraient a 85%, selon un haut responsable de
la province.

Les avions de coalition continuent a mener des raids quotidiens qui
visent notamment des positions de l’EI dans le centre du pays, selon
le Pentagone.

S’etant entretenus a plusieurs reprises ces derniers jours sur la
strategie militaire, les responsables des pays de la coalition ont
appele la Turquie a s’impliquer davantage, notamment en permettant
l’utilisation de ses bases militaires, plus proches des lieux de
frappes, notamment en Syrie.

Le Premier ministre turc Ahmet Davutoglu a par ailleurs rejete mercredi
l’appel de la France a ouvrir plus largement le passage a la frontière
avec le nord de la Syrie.

Il a insiste sur le fait que seuls les Syriens etaient autorises a
“repartir pour rejoindre la lutte” pour Kobane.

Ankara interdit aux combattants rebelles du Parti des travailleurs du
Kurdistan (PKK) de rejoindre Kobane, provoquant la colère des Kurdes
de Turquie.

“Nous ne laissons pas les citoyens turcs entrer en Syrie parce
que nous ne voulons pas qu’ils prennent part au conflit syrien”,
a justifie M. Davutoglu.

Le president francais Francois Hollande avait estime que la Turquie
devait “absolument ouvrir sa frontière” a des renforts pour empecher
la chute de cette ville.

vendredi 17 octobre 2014, Stephane (c)armenews.com

UN JOURNAL ARMENIEN UNIQUE DECOUVERT A L’UNIVERSITE DE STANFORD

USA

Le personnel en charge du microfilmage a l’Institut Hoover sur
la guerre, la revolution et la paix de l’Universite de Stanford a
recemment trouve une boîte anonyme de microfilm qui leur a presente
des difficultes : Il s’agit d’une copie d’un journal de la Première
Guerre mondiale publie en script armenien.

Pour aider a traduire le titre, le bibliothecaire d’Hoover se
tourna vers Behzad Allahyar, directeur du catalogue des langues du
Moyen-Orient pour les bibliothèques de l’universite de Stanford qui a
son tour a demande de l’aide auprès de Nora Avetyan, la bibliothecaire
pour l’armenien et le persan a l’UCLA.

.

Le journal, intitule Zang, a ete produit par le Parti social-democrate
Hunchakian, fondee en Suisse en 1887 par les Armeniens dans l’espoir
d’etablir une Armenie libre et independante de l’Empire ottoman.

Les numeros du journal sur microfilm couvrent les annees 1919 a 1922,
la periode où la Première Republique de courte duree de l’Armenie a
ete cree après le genocide armenien et a la suite de la revolution
russe, avant d’etre incorpore dans l’Union sovietique en 1922 .

ARMENIAN GENOCIDE CENTRAL THEME AT CAGLIARI INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE

12:14, 16 Oct 2014

The Armenian Genocide has been selected as a central topic of an
international conference set to take place in Cagliari, Italy from
24 to 25 October, Massis Post reports.

The two-day event will bring together Italian and foreign politicians,
as well as scholars and journalists. The conference is the initiative
of the Italian-Arab “Assadakah” center.

The discussions on the Armenian Genocide are scheduled for October 25.

The participants reiterate an earlier decision to declare 2015 as an
Armenian Genocide commemoration year in the Italian city.

Speeches will be delivered by Cagliari Mayor Massimo Zedda, Armenian
Ambassador to Italy Sargis Ghazaryan, Director of “Armenpress”
news agency Aram Ananyan, researcher of University of Cagliari
Nicola Melis, Responsible for the Foreign Affairs of the Center and
military journalist Talal Khrais, Syrian journalist Naman Tarcha, and
“Sponda Sud” news agency’s editor on geopolitical issues, journalist
Alessandro Aramu.

Secretary-General of the Arab-Italian Assadakah Center
Raimondo.Schiavone will be the coordinator of the discussions on the
Armenian Genocide.

Other discussions will focus on the new geopolitical developments
in Mesopotamia, as well as the role and significance of the media in
war situations.

The Italian-Arabic center had earlier proposed different pro-Armenian
initiatives in remembrance of the 1915 atrocities against the Armenians
of the Ottoman Empire. The center has proclaimed 2015 as Armenian
Genocide Remembrance Day. It has even asked the European Parliament
to consider a similar decision on the pan-European level.

RED LINE?: NON-GOVERNING FORCES REITERATE OPPOSITION TO CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM AFTER PUBLICATION OF CONCEPT

POLITICS | 16.10.14 | 12:21

Photolure

By SARA KHOJOYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter

Despite mostly positive conclusions from international organizations,
such as the Venice Commission that considers Armenia’s planned
constitutional amendments “valuable” and having a “reliable basis”,
most of the country’s opposition forces are up in arms against
the reform.

It is also noteworthy that at one recent non-scientific survey
conducted by the A1 Plus news website shows that 80 percent of
respondents also opposes the changes.

Only one parliamentary minority party, the Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (Dashnaktsutyun), still refrains from finally evaluating
the reform. Last spring Dashnaktsutyun joined the Prosperous
Armenia Party (PAP), Heritage and Armenian National Congress in
an informal bloc popularly known as Quartet that later presented
a list of a dozen demands to the government. But in the matter of
constitutional amendments Dashnaktsutyun disagreed with its partners
and did not engage in the holding of rallies during which the planned
constitutional changes are one of the key subjects of criticism.

Dashnaktsutyun said it would present its view after the concept of
the reform was published.

According to the concept that was published on Wednesday, the powers of
the president are to be curtailed, but not in favor of the Parliament
but in favor of the Government, representative of the Constitutional
Reform Commission, constitutional law expert Vardan Poghosyan said.

“It is not that the reduced powers of the President will pass to the
Parliament. A lion’s share of them will pass to the Government and
the Prime Minister,” said Poghosyan, according to RFE/RL’s Armenian
Service.

Under the amended Constitution, it is the Prime Minister rather than
the Parliament Speaker who will be the “key player” in the country.

“It will be a prime minister whom it will be difficult to remove. For
this procedure the so-called constructive vote of no confidence is
envisaged, and the meaning of it is that one can change the prime
minister only when at the same time it is possible to choose a new
prime minister,” said the expert.

The President, according to the concept, should not be entitled
to be reelected, “so that during his or her tenure s/he could more
integrally ensure his/her independence from political forces.”

The Venice Commission made a special observation regarding the election
of the President.

“The decision to change the electoral system should be paid special
attention to, because people who are still accustomed to the direct
election of the President, may feel deprived of their right to vote,”
the international institution said, advising that the electorate
and civil society should be properly informed about the reasons for
the changes.

Meanwhile, the Prosperous Armenia Party, which is the largest of the
parties involved in the so-called opposition trio, stated that it
has a negative position on the concept of constitutional amendments.

“For example, in no way will we accept any constitutional amendments.

This is the red line. Constitutional amendments are simply a means to
create a situation where a government is formed without responsibility
and forever,” PAP lawmaker Stepan Margaryan told RFE/RL’s Armenian
Service.

At a meeting with reporters on Wednesday Heritage Party member Zaruhi
Postanjyan called the planned constitutional amendments “unfair”. “Its
goal is to extend the term of this usurper government and serve the
interests of the usurpers,” she said.

Political and electoral technologies expert Armen Badalyan thinks that
no matter how hard the opposition struggles against the constitutional
changes and what they see as an attempt of President Serzh Sargsyan
to ensure his continued grip on power, “the current president has
more powerful allies.”

“The current president has a more powerful ally for ensuring the
passage of constitutional amendments, which is 10,000 drams (about
$25), and if necessary, the government will turn to this ally’s aid,”
the expert told ArmeniaNow, implying the allegations by opposition
parties and media that authorities have used bribes to buy people’s
vote during elections in the past.

“And secondly, in vassal countries like Armenia the government is
formed because it has the go-ahead of the government of the ‘mother
country’, in our case it is Russia, and the Constitution does not
play a big role,” he concluded.

FRANCE FLY PAST ARMENIA

FIFA.com
Oct 15 2014

Loic Remy scored a seventh-minute opener to set France on their way
to a comfortable 3-0 friendly win over Armenia in Yerevan on Tuesday
evening. Andre-Pierre Gignac’s 55th-minute penalty and a late strike
from Antoine Griezmann wrapped up the victory for Didier Deschamps’
men.

Armenia had started the game with confidence after a promising draw
against Serbia in a UEFA EURO 2016 qualifier on Saturday. But they
fell behind when an Artem Simonyan free-kick came to nothing in
the French half and a swift counter-attack by the visitors ended in
Chelsea striker Remy firing the opener.

The hosts had their moments with Marcos Pizzelli in particular causing
problems for the French defence and goalkeeper Steve Mandanda forced
into an 18th-minute save. But Deschamps’ men, looking to extend
a three-match unbeaten run since their World Cup exit to Germany,
grew more dominant following the half-time introduction of Paul Pogba.

It was Pogba who was hauled down in the penalty area by Varazdat
Haroyan in the 55th minute, giving Gignac the chance to lash his
side’s second past Roman Berezovsky in the Armenia goal. Remy missed
an opportunity in the 63rd minute and Armenia substitute Hovhannes
Hambardzumyan had a chance to reduce the deficit but saw his shot
saved by Mandanda. Griezmann grabbed the third for France seven
minutes from time, shortly after Gignac had a shot blocked.

FRENCH OFFICIAL: AZERBAIJANI AND ARMENIAN PRESIDENTS’ MEETING IS ONE OF PRIORITIES IN OCTOBER

APA, Azerbaijan
Oct 15 2014

[ 15 October 2014 11:08 ]

Baku. Zumrud Pashayeva – APA. The French side will work to create
conditions for reaching progress in talks on Karabakh during the
upcoming meeting between Sargsyan and Aliyev, representative of French
Foreign Ministry Eric Fournier said during his visit to Armenia,
APA reports quoting news.am.

“The upcoming meeting of the Armenian and Azerbaijani presidents is
one of the priority topics of October. The meeting that will be held
in Paris on the initiative of French leader is important for us in
terms of creating conditions to ensure an atmosphere of trust that
will enable to reach progress in talks on Karabakh,” the diplomat said.

NAGORNO-KARABAKH CONFLICT MULLED IN BAKU

AzerNews, Azerbaijan
Oct 15 2014

By Sara Rajabova

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has discussed the settlement of
the long-lasting Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with
OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs.

President Aliyev received co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group Igor
Popov (Russia), Pierre Andrieu (France), Personal Representative
of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office Andrzej Kasprzyk and David Salvo
(the assistant co-chair from the U.S.) on October 15.

The sides mulled the issues related to the current state and prospects
of negotiations to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, which emerged
in 1988 over Armenia’s territorial claims against Azerbaijan.

Following the Baku visit, co-chairs will travel to Armenia.

During the OSCE monitoring on October 16, OSCE Chairperson-in-Office
Personal Representative Andrzej Kasprzyk and OSCE Minsk Group
co-chairs, Igor Popov (Russia), Pierre Andre (France), James Warlick
(US), as well as Warlick’s assistant David Salvo and Igor Popov’s
assistant Elena Kravchenko are expected to cross to the opposite side
of the contact line from the territories controlled by Azerbaijani
armed forces.

For over two decades, Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in
conflict which emerged over Armenia’s territorial claims against its
South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian
armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan’s territory,
including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. A fragile
ceasefire has been in place since 1994, but long-standing efforts by
U.S., Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far.

Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council’s four
resolutions on its pullout from the neighboring country’s territories.

10,070 ARMENIAN CITIZENS BECAME RUSSIAN CITIZENS IN FIRST HALF OF 2014

Lragir.am
Country – 15 October 2014, 23:31

In the first half of 2014, 205,590 citizens of Armenia have been
registered in the territorial units of the Russian Federal Migration
Service.

According to statistics for January-June 2014 published by the
Armenian State Migration Service, the number of citizens who have
received Russian citizenship is 10,017.

The number of Armenian citizens living in Russia with temporary
residence permit is 93,843.

53,700 work permits have been issued to RA citizens, including 3900
skilled workers and 215 highly qualified workers. 96,000 licenses
have been granted to Armenian citizens to work for private persons
in Russia.