Author: Badalian Vardan

STATE DEPARTMENT CALLS ON ALL SIDES IN SYRIA TO PROTECT CIVILIANS

By Contributor // August 8, 2013

Letter to ANCA Outlines U.S. Humanitarian Response to Syria Conflict

WASHINGTON- The U.S. Department of State, in response to concerns
raised by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) and a
broad cross-section of Armenian American civic and church leaders,
has stressed the urgency of ongoing U.S. diplomatic initiatives to
remind all sides in Syria of their obligations under international
law to protect civilians and to allow humanitarian organizations safe
access to all people in need.

The Department’s letter comes following a July 17th U.S. government
briefing on Syria humanitarian assistance efforts hosted by the
State Department and U.S. Agency for International Development
(USAID) for representatives of Armenian American civic, church, and
charitable organizations from across the United States. The letter to
the ANCA underscores the importance that the United States attaches
to ensuring regular medical and humanitarian access to Aleppo, and
notes the life-saving U.S. contributions to meeting basic needs for
those in host countries, including Armenia and Lebanon.

The full array of urgent humanitarian issues of concern to Armenian
Americans has consistently been raised by community leaders, including:

1) Ensuring the balanced and needs-based distribution of U.S.

humanitarian aid to all areas of Syria, including those like Aleppo
with large Armenian and other Christian populations;

2) Preventing humanitarian blockades of civilian populations, such
as those creating crises in Aleppo;

3) Providing additional assistance to the Armenian government and NGO’s
supporting and helping to settle Syrians who have fled to Armenia, and

4) Assisting the Armenian Church and charitable groups in Lebanon
as they support the very considerable humanitarian needs of refugees
from Syria.

In his Aug. 5 letter to the ANCA, State Department Director of the
Office of Europe, Central Asia and Americas, Bureau of Population,
Refugees, and Migration for John Underriner referenced community
concerns about getting vital humanitarian aid to the affected
communities in Syria and the devastating effects of a recent blockade
of assistance to Aleppo. “We recognize the critical need to ensure
regular medical and humanitarian access to those who remain in
Aleppo and for all displaced and conflict-affected people in Syria,”
noted Underriner. “Humanitarian workers are risking their lives to
provide life-saving assistance to those suffering and have worked
tirelessly with contacts on all of the conflict to attempt to negotiate
humanitarian pauses to allow aid delivery. We have reminded all sides
to the conflict of their obligations under international humanitarian
law to protect civilians, and urge them to allow humanitarian
organizations safe access to all people in need.”

The full text of Underriner’s letter is provided below. Since issuing
the letter, President Obama announced an additional $185 million in
assistance to those affected by the Syrian crisis, bringing to $1
billion the total U.S. assistance commitment to date.

The Armenian American community, along with Armenian communities around
the world, has undertaken far-reaching and life-saving humanitarian
efforts, through the Armenian Apostolic, Catholic, and Evangelical
churches, Syrian Armenian Relief Fund, Armenian Relief Society,
Armenian General Benevolent Union and other avenues. The Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA) has undertaken a grassroots
effort to educate Congressional legislators about the plight of
Armenians and other affected minorities in Syria and urged Congress
to provide relief and resettlement support for at-risk Armenians and
other Christian populations in Syria and throughout the Middle East
as part of the FY 2014 foreign aid bill.

***

Text of State Department Letter to ANCA Regarding U.S. Humanitarian
Assistance to those Affected by the Syrian Crisis

United States Department of State Washington, D.C. 20520

August 5, 2013

Aram Hamparian Executive Director Armenian National Committee of
America 1711 N Street NW Washington, DC 20036

Dear Mr. Hamparian,

Thank you for your July 24 letter outlining the Armenian National
Committee of America’s concerns regarding the humanitarian situation
resulting from the crisis in Syria. We share your concern and
appreciate your community’s willingness to raise awareness and mobilize
resources to provide relief and humanitarian assistance to Syrian
Armenians affected by violence in Syria and throughout the region.

The U.S. government is providing funding to the United Nations,
the International Committee of the Red Cross, and non-governmental
organizations to meet the humanitarian needs of all those affected by
the current crisis. These agencies are a key part of the international
humanitarian system, governed by humanitarian principles, which
brings technical expertise and operational capacity to respond to a
large-scale crisis such as this. The United States is providing nearly
$815 million in humanitarian assistance to date to support those
affected by the Syria crisis. Our contributions provide life-saving
emergency assistance to meet basic humanitarian needs, such as shelter,
water, sanitation, and health both inside Syria and in host countries,
including Armenia and Lebanon.

As you highlight in your letter, humanitarian access inside Syria
has been one of the greatest challenges to organizations responding
on the ground. While humanitarian partners have been able to provide
food and medical treatment to some of those affected, other areas
remain inaccessible to humanitarian organizations. We recognize
the critical need to ensure regular medical and humanitarian
access to those who remain in Aleppo and for all displaced and
conflict-affected people in Syria. Humanitarian workers are risking
their lives to provide life-saving assistance to those suffering
and have worked tirelessly with contacts on all of the conflict to
attempt to negotiate humanitarian pauses to allow aid delivery. We
have reminded all sides to the conflict of their obligations under
international humanitarian law to protect civilians, and urge them
to allow humanitarian organizations safe access to all people in need.

The United States will continue to encourage other international
donors to provide assistance through the UN humanitarian appeals
inside Syria and in the region, and will continue to partner with
those organizations inside Syria working to access those most in need
in all fourteen governorates.

We hope this information is helpful to you. Please do not hesitate
to contact us if we can be of further assistance on this or any
other matter.

Sincerely,

John Underriner

Director, Office of Europe, Central Asia and Americas, Bureau of
Population, Refugees, and Migration, U.S. Department of States

ARMENIA RETAIN 66TH PLACE IN FIFA RANKINGS

August 8, 2013 – 13:59 AMT

PanARMENIAN.Net – Armenia retained their 66th place in FIFA rankings
published Aug 8, 2013.

Armenia’s rivals in 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers are placed as
follows: Italy are 6th, Czech Republic are 26th, Denmark are 27th,
Bulgaria and Malta are placed 53rd and 134th respectively.

Spain top the FIFA rankings with 1484 points, followed by Germany
and Columbia with 1257 and 1219 points respectively.

A TALYSH EDITOR AWARDED A PRIZE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

AZERBAIJAN

Translated from French

Hilal Mamedov, who is being prosecuted in Baku on charges of spying
for Iran for inciting ethnic hatred and illegal possession of drugs,
was awarded by the Azerbaijan Institute of Peace and Democracy on
price Isakhan Ashurov in recognition of its commitment to human
rights. Meanwhile, legal proceedings were adjourned last week after
a key prosecution witness was not presented to deal with issues of
lawyers Mamedov.

Hilal Mamedov, 53, is a member of the minority Talysh of Azerbaijan
and editor of a weekly newspaper in Talysh language named “Tolyshi
sado” (World Talysh). He was arrested in Baku in June, shortly after
a video was posted on YouTube where he is seen singing in Russian,
a traditional melody Talysh, the refrain “Who the hell are you? Why
not get lost? “The video is all the rage across Russia.

A subsequent search of the apartment Mamedov gave a small amount of
heroin with his family and activists of human rights in Baku believe
she was stashed by the police.

According to Rafiq Jalilov, co-chairman of a committee formed last
summer to defend the rights of Mamedov espionage charges against him
based solely on the testimony of Elman Quliyev. Quliyev was arrested
in 2007 in collaboration Mamedov’s predecessor as editor of “sado
Tolyshi” literature professor Novruzali Mamedov (Mamedovs the two
are not related). Quliyev Novruzali Mamedov and were sentenced in
2008 Quliyev six years on charges of treason and Mamedov 10 years on
charges of spying for Iran. Mamedov died in prison the following year.

Testifying at the trial on March 6 Hilal Mamedov, Quliyev said he
had a conversation with Mamedov five hours in a tea house in Baku in
2006 during which Mamedov said the presence of two other men he had
contacts with Iran with which he worked to undermine state sovereignty
of Azerbaijan. (The Talysh are an Iranian ethnic group living on both
sides of the southern border of Azerbaijan and Iran.)

But the two alleged witnesses to this conversation, living abroad,
provided written testimony denying that he was present, according to
Halil Bagirov, one of the lawyers Mamedov. Bagirov also noted that
during his trial in 2008, Quliyev said he did not know Hilal Mamedov.

Quliyev was in prison at the time of arrest Hilal Mamedov end of June,
but has since been released before the end of his sentence. Nobody
knows where he is now, and why he did not appear before the court on
March 27.

Speaking last week at the official presentation of the award Isakhan
Ashurov another counsel Mamedov, Leyla Yunus, who heads the Institute
for Peace and Democracy, said that Mamedov was chosen as the first
recipient because activists of all human rights, journalists and
lawyers Azerbaijan year, he is currently in the most difficult
situation. She Mamedov characterized as a man who has always sought to
defend human rights, despite the pressure and threats he was subjected.

The price Isakhan Ashurov named after a former investigator of the
Ministry of Interior which fell within the scope of the Azerbaijani
authorities in 1994 and was jailed for “ultra vires.” After his release
two years later, Ashurov began representing political prisoners and
prisoners of conscience. He died last year after a long illness.

Also last week, the Talysh Cultural Centre has decided to resume
publication of “Tolyshi sado” in both Talysh and Azeri languages.

According Jalilov, publication was suspended in June 2011, when Hilal
Mamedov was first submitted to the “pressure” of people he (Mamedov)
declined to name.

Thursday, August 8, 2013, Stephane © armenews.com

GADDAFI’S FATE AWAITS ALIYEV – ASSEMBLY OF AZERBAIJAN ARMENIANS

August 08, 2013 | 12:32

YEREVAN. – Being rid of Azerbaijan’s incumbent president Ilham Aliyev
is relevant for all sensible political forces of the country.

Chairman Grigori Ayvazyan of the Assembly of Azerbaijan Armenians
stated the aforesaid during a press conference on Thursday.

“[But] we believe the Nagorno-Karabakh issue could become the cause for
primary differences with respect to collaboration with [Azerbaijani]
opposition leader Rustam Ibragimbekov,” Ayvazyan noted.

He added that killed Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s fate awaits
Aliyev, too.

To note, the presidential elections in Azerbaijan will be conducted
in October.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

HENRIKH MKHITARYAN SINGS IN GERMAN – VIDEO

[ Part 2.2: “Attached Text” ]

10:18, 8 August, 2013

YEREVAN, AUGUST 8, ARMENPRESS: The midfielder of the Armenian National
Football team and Borussia Dortmund Henrikh Mkhitaryan performs a
song devoted to the Borussia in the German language. As reported
by Armenpress, during the program, organized by the BVB total group
of the club, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Kevin Großkreutz perform a song
devoted to the Borussia in German.

The midfielder of the Armenian National Football team and Borussia
Dortmund Henrikh Mkhitaryan moved to the German Borussia Dortmund
from the Ukrainian Shakhtar. He has already managed to participate
in several Borussia’s friendly matches and got integrated in the team.

The midfielder of the Armenian National Football team and Borussia
Dortmund has returned to his trainings about a week ago. On July 16
he injured his ankle and could not train for four weeks.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan was born on January 21, 1989. As a member of the
Armenian national team Mkhitaryan participated in 33 international
matches and scored 8 goals since his debut in an away friendly
match against Panama on 14 January 2007. His previous clubs include
Pyunik Yerevan, where he came through the youth system, and Metalurg
Donetsk. Mkhitaryan was chosen Armenian Footballer of the Year in
2009, 2011 and 2012. He was also voted as the best Shakhtar player
of 2011-12 season by the fans. In 2012 Mkhitaryan was named in UEFA’s
Top 100 players by UEFA European Football Yearbook 2012-13.

LE PROJET D’UN MEMORIAL DEDIE AU GENOCIDE ARMENIEN DEVOILE A PASADENA

USA

Les partisans d’un memorial commemorant le genocide armenien ont
devoile la conception de leur monument. La conception simple,
mais profondement symbolique cree par Catherine Menard de l’Art
Center College of Design a ete accueillie par des acclamations et de
l’admiration lorsqu’elle a ete devoilee lors d’une ceremonie. Le projet
de Catherine Menard a ete choisi par les juges du Comite commemoratif
du genocide armenien de Pasadena parmi plus de 16 autres projets. Elle
a travaille en collaboration avec le celèbre architecte Stefanos
Polyzoides afin de traduire la conception dans un modèle architectural.

L’etudiante de 26 ans a declare que l’idee de laisser sa marque sur
sa ville natale de Pasadena en concevant un monument commemoratif a
destination des generations a venir etait une source de fierte un peu
ecrasante. ” Cela me donne encore la chair de poule “, dit-elle. ”
Je recois encore ce formidable et merveilleux sentiment “.

Le produit final est minimaliste dans la conception, densement rempli
de signification et de symbolisme. A 16 mètres de haut se trouve un
trepied au centre d’un cercle de 26 pieds de diamètre en pierre, qui
est entoure par des grenadiers. Dans le cercle se trouve une rangee
de buissons qui creent un chemin autour du centre du memorial.

Le trepied est symbolique de celui qui a ete utilise pour pendre les
dirigeants armeniens pendant le genocide explique Catherine Menard.

Des gouttes d’eau illuminees par des lumières vont tomber toutes les
21 secondes a partir du haut du trepied vers un bassin. Dans le delai
d’un an, il va liberer 1,5 millions de gouttes, symbolisant une larme
pour chacune des victimes du genocide.

Chacun des grenadiers qui bordent le cercle sera nomme pour l’une des
12 ” provinces perdues ” de l’Armenie, situee dans la Turquie moderne.

Mais le monument est concu non seulement pour provoquer la meditation
chez les spectateurs sur les horreurs qui se sont deroules lors du
premier genocide du 20ème siècle, mais pour inspirer l’espoir.

Les gouttes d’eau ne se rassemblent pas dans le bassin de pierre, mais
elles se posent sur lui, laissant leur impact avant de disparaître
dans la terre, comme les esprits dans l’au-dela, dit-elle.

Alors que le souvenir est l’objectif essentiel de la memoire, le
memorial est egalement concu pour transmettre le message que ” nous
devons aller de l’avant “.

Le memorial devrait voir le jour a temps pour le 100e anniversaire
du genocide le 24 avril 2015.

jeudi 8 août 2013, Stephane ©armenews.com

LE GOUVERNEMENT NE SOUTIENDRA PAS L’EX-GOUVERNEUR DU SYUNIK

Elections

La prochaine election legislative partielle aura lieu le 29 septembre
dans une circonscription de la province du Syunik. Le siège du
Parlement est vacant depuis que Suren Khachatrian a ete contraint de
demissionner en juin après la fusillade meurtrière qui s’est produite
près de sa maison a Goris. Le fils de Khachatrian, Tigran et l’un de
ses gardes du corps sont actuellement en etat d’arrestation et sont
accuses de meurtre. Actuellement, Vahe Hakobian occupe le poste de
gouverneur de Syunik.

Les medias armeniens avaient allegue que le HHK, dont Khachatrian
est un membre eminent, pourrait nommer l’ex-gouverneur au poste
parlementaire. Cependant, Galust Sahakian, vice-president du HHK,
a exclu une telle possibilite.” Non, je ne pense pas “, a-t-il dit.

Sahakian a declare que le parti au pouvoir dirige par le president
Serge Sarkissian va choisir un candidat ce mois-ci. ” Nous avons
beaucoup de candidats “, a-t-il ajoute sans plus de precisions.

jeudi 8 août 2013, Laetitia ©armenews.com

“IT IS EASIER TO BE A FEMALE JOURNALIST IN THE SOUTH CAUCASUS”

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Aug 7 2013

7 August 2013 – 9:41am

By Vestnik Kavkaza

Last month a group of journalists from the South Caucasus republics
visited Moscow. They met their colleagues from Vestnik Kavkaza, and
its editor-in-chief spoke to each of the guests. Today we present an
interview with journalist Goar Karapetyan from Armenia; she represents
the intergovernmental TV and Radio Company “Mir.”

– Is it easy to be a female journalist in Armenia?

– Yes, it is.

– What are the advantages of women over men, in terms of journalism
in the South Caucasus?

– I think it is not only about the South Caucasus, but in general
women are more communicative and empathic. It is very important. With
regard to the South Caucasus, the advantage is that most top positions
are taken by men, and it is easier to build contacts for a lady.

– Does the Russian language give you an opportunity for a career
growth in the media field?

– As for the country where I work, I think it doesn’t because the
number of the Russian speaking media has reduced. I should say
that I have already reached my ceiling and I have no prospects
for career growth. Today it is the highest level in our country –
the intergovernmental company “Mir”. There are no periodicals or
information agencies which are respectful and where one can work to
gain professional skills.

– Are you an analyst or a news person?

– I used to work as either analyst or a news person. At the moment
I majorly deal with the military and sporting spheres. I feel great
about both these spheres. I don’t like writing about the social sphere
and culture. I prefer politics and defense.

– There is an idea of establishing a system of professional
communication between journalists of the South Caucasus, a kind of a
social net. I believe professionals lack communication. What do you
think about it?

– I would support it, but it depends on the goal of the social net.

– The goal is obvious: new technologies, new topics, professional
experience exchange, and searching for new approaches because
journalism shouldn’t destroy, I think. It should create.

– Yes, it should create. I think it would be wonderful to have such
a platform.

– How do you find Moscow?

– I love the city. I cannot say that I am excited, but it is a good
city. I always feel comfortable here.

REMEDY FOR THE AL-QA’IDAH SCOURGE

Taraf, Turkey
Aug 2 2013

Column Ceyda Karan

This is not so unusual in foreign policy. Every politician with no
vision who sees peoples as playing cards in the game of imperialism and
who sees himself in a magnifying glass does it. He complains only when
he starts paying a price instead of others. Just look at the adventures
of the United States since Vietnam. It is hard to enumerate all the
occasions that illustrate this arrogance but let us talk about the
best known one of recent years, namely Al-Qa’idah. After all, that is
the scourge we face. In truth this is also the story of how a foreign
policy vision that started out with aspirations of “zero problems”
was “zeroed out.” To start now rather than saying that redressing
deficiencies will take a long time [sentence as published].

There are not too many people who do not know this but let us
summarize: Groups that swear allegiance to Al-Qa’idah – the local
people generally call them the “Al-Nusra Front” – and that receive
logistical support from the Gulf through Turkey in the name of
“freeing” Syria are now swarming on Syria’s northern border or along
our longest border. I will not get into the “very deep” ideological
distinctions between them over whether there should or should not be
a caliphate. In sum, these groups dream of establishing a Salafi state.

Until a few month ago, we were being told: “You exaggerate too much.

There are only a few foreign fighters. The real force is the Free
Syrian Army.” Today, [Turkish] support for Al-Nusra is out in the
open. Consequently, it is hard to tell whether we should laugh or
cry at explanations by government sources to the effect that “we
support them out of necessity because they are superior militarily
and economically.”

Here is a dejA vu of the US trauma in Afghanistan. Syrian dictator
Bashar al-Asad must be snickering somewhere. Faced with open attacks
by Al-Nusra, Syrian Kurds have mobilized. A Kurdish-Arab war is
being imposed in the region. Westerners, chiefly the United States,
are perturbed. Ankara does not know what to do. Just take a look at
PYD [Democratic Union Party] Salih Muslim’s visit [to Turkey]. Is
Turkey a mediator, a big brother, a regional giant who is worried
that the crow it has fed may gouge its own eye, or a country that
is reluctantly providing support for a Kurdish state in Rojava and
therefore the West Kurdistan project?

Whether you like it or not, Syrian Kurds have seized an important
and historical opportunity. They will not allow Al-Nusra to take it
away from them. This is an existential fight. In truth, the fight is
against raving fanatics whom we oppose together and who are sworn to
establish a permanent presence in the region. These people are prepared
to perpetrate every form of terrorism. They are also prepared to bite
the hand that feeds them.

Some people have upset the applecart. More correctly, some people
dreamed of apples in the cart but realized that they are bad after
getting their hands on them. Imagine that we got the message in
Somalia, from which we have not spared any assistance as part of
our African overture. The Al-Qa’idah-affiliated Al-Shabab struck our
embassy there.

Now we have to sort the rice in Dimyat as we are about to lose the
bulgur at home [a play on an old adage meaning “figure out what went
wrong as we try to save what little we had”]. As you know, Dimyat
[Damietta] is in Egypt, the place where we have run a deep policy
against the coup and where no one has listened to our condemnatory
statements. Let us say that it is normal for Westerners not to take
note. However, not even a single Arab country has paid attention. The
Al-Jazeera television station of our ally Qatar has suddenly been
labelled a “bad boy” because of its Egypt reporting. Jingoistic
habits are useless if the only function of the media is “agitation
and propaganda.”

For example, the “one minute” sallies staged against Israel would not
save the day in these circumstances because the probable response
will be: “Men with sticks in their hands are killing your youth in
your streets.”

A foreign policy that is weak and isolated but that maintains its
defiance is not policy. The only remedy to the hopelessness in
relations with Gulf countries, Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Armenia, Russia,
the EU, and even the United States is a new direction. The way to
do that is clear: Cleanse the region of “Al-Qa’idah elements”; stop
patronizing the Kurds on the other side of the border and turning
them into enemies while making peace with Kurds at home; put an end
to the rhetoric of “Ottoman legacy” in relations with the countries
of the region; and develop the parameters of a new harmony with the
EU instead of engaging in arrogant acts of defiance.

Most importantly, this is the time to think about what Turkey
“inspires.”

[Translated from Turkish]

THOUSANDS MARCHES FOR OCCUPIED AZERBAIJANI TERRITORIES

Cihan News Agency (CNA), Turkey
July 23, 2013 Tuesday

BAKU (CIHAN)- Tens of thousands of Azerbaijanis marched to commemorate
the 20th anniversary of Armenian occupation which had been carried
out against Agdam region, where one of most bloodiest clashes held
during 1st Karabakh war.

Thousand across the country gathered at the township of Guzanli which
is located on the border of occupied Azerbaijani territories. Armenian
terrorism and violence were condemned during the rally with anti
Armenian banners and slogans. Most of the people in the rally was
internally displaced people from occupied Azerbaijani lands.

Aghdam region was occupied by the Armenian armed units on July 23,
1993. 1154 sq m territory of Azerbaijan’s Aghdam region went into the
control of Armenia as a result of occupation. Azerbaijan controls
only 22.6% of Aghdam with a population of 147,000. More than 6 000
Azerbaijani soldiers were killed in battles for Aghdam.