Author: Chalian Meline

Private of the Artsakh Defense Army Narek Harutyunyan (born in 1997) was killed by Azerbaijani fire at about 17:50 on April 24, the Artsakh Defense Ministry reports.

Probe into the details of the incident is underway.

The Defense Army shares the sorrow of the heavy loss and expresses it support to the soldier’s family and friends.

The Azerbaijani side violated the ceasefire more than 50 times on April 24 and overnight, firing over 800 shots in the direction of the Armenian positions.

The rival used sniper rifles in the southeastern and eastern sections of the line oc contact.

The Karabakh forces undertook retaliatory measures to pressure the activeness of the rival.

The Chairmen and Ranking Members on both the House Foreign Affairs and Intelligence Committees joined today with the leadership of the Armenian Caucus and more than eighty of their U.S. House colleagues in calling upon President Trump to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide in his April 24th White House statement, reported the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).

In a bipartisan letter calling upon the President to “appropriately mark April 24th as a day of American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide, signatories noted that, “by commemorating the Armenian Genocide, we renew our commitment to prevent future atrocities.”

“We join with Members of Congress in calling upon President Trump to reject Turkey’s gag rule and embrace an honest American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide,” said ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian. “It’s long past time for America to stop outsourcing our national policy on the Armenian Genocide to Recep Erdogan’s increasingly authoritarian and anti-American regime.”

 

In calling upon President Trump to properly mark April 24th, the signatories highlighted the U.S. record of past recognition, including “President Reagan, who recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1981, and the Eisenhower Administration, which did the same in a 1951 submission to the International Court of Justice.” These actions, as well as resolutions by the House of Representatives in 1975 (H.J.R.148) and 1984 (H.J.R.247), while clearly constituting U.S. recognition, just as clearly did not translate into either consistent official annual Armenian Genocide commemorations or sustained U.S. pressure on Turkey to end its denials of this crime.

The letter specifically cites Christian populations targeted by the Ottoman Empire’s genocidal campaign, including “Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Greeks, Pontians, Syriacs, and other persecuted peoples.” The full text of the letter is provided below.

On March 22nd, Rep. Trott was joined by Rep. Adam Schiff and the Congressional Armenian Caucus leadership in introducing a bipartisan anti-genocide resolution (H.Res.220) calling on the United States to apply the lessons of the Armenian Genocide in seeking to prevent modern day atrocities across the Middle East. That measure stresses that “proper commemoration and consistent condemnation of the Armenian Genocide will strengthen our international standing in preventing modern day genocides,” and, building upon the 2016 official U.S. designation of an ISIS genocide against Middle East minorities, specifically calls for the following: “[T]he United States, in seeking to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide against Christians, Yezidis, Muslims, Kurds, and other vulnerable religious and ethnic groups in the Middle East, should draw upon relevant lessons of the United States Government, civil society, and humanitarian response to the Armenian Genocide, Seyfo, and the broader genocidal campaign by the Ottoman Empire against Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Syriacs, Greeks, Pontians and other Christians upon their biblical era homelands.”

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Congressional Letter to President Trump Regarding the Armenian Genocide

Dear Mr. President,

We are writing to encourage you to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide on April 24th.

In leading an honest and accurate American remembrance of this known case of genocide, you will stand with President Reagan, who recognized the Armenian Genocide in 1981, and the Eisenhower Administration, which did the same in a 1951 submission to the International Court of Justice. The House of Representatives has also commemorated the Armenian Genocide, through HJR148 in 1975 and HJR247 in 1984.

Armenia remains deeply committed to expanding the bonds of friendship that have long connected the American and Armenian peoples. Among the proudest chapters in our shared history is America’s remarkable record of protesting the Genocide and in caring for the survivors of this crime. The United States Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire in 1915, Henry Morgenthau, helped to chronicle the brutal extermination of the Armenian people through a campaign of mass murder and violent expulsion.

In the years after the genocide, Ambassador Morgenthau and other concerned Americans launched the Near East Relief, a Congressionally chartered humanitarian organization, which raised $116 million (over $2.5 billion in 2017 dollars) to aid the victims of the Ottoman Empire’s mass murder of millions of Armenians, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Greeks, Pontians, Syriacs, and other persecuted peoples. The generosity of the American people saved countless lives and helped to ensure the continued survival of the Armenian culture.

The Armenian Genocide continues to stand as an important reminder that crimes against humanity must not go without recognition and condemnation. Through recognition of the Armenian Genocide we pay tribute to the perseverance and determination of those who survived, as well as to the Americans of Armenian descent who have helped strengthen our country. It is our duty to honor those contributions with an honest statement of history recognizing the massacre of 1.5 million Armenians as the 20th century’s first genocide. By commemorating the Armenian Genocide, we renew our commitment to prevent future atrocities.

In that spirit of honoring the victims and redoubling our commitment to prevent genocide, we ask you to appropriately mark April 24th as a day of American remembrance of the Armenian Genocide.

Thank you for taking our views into consideration.

Sincerely,

The man suspected of killing 11 people by bombing a St Petersburg train is a native of Kyrgyzstan who obtained Russian citizenship, the Central Asian country’s security service says, the BBC reports.

At least 45 people were injured in the explosion between two underground stations on Monday afternoon.

The Kyrgyz security service named the bomber as Akbarzhon Jalilov, who was born in Osh in 1995.

There are conflicting reports as to whether he was a suicide bomber.

Authorities in St Petersburg have declared three days of mourning.

Kyrgyz state media said the country’s security service was “maintaining contact with the Russian secret service for further investigation”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was in St Petersburg – his home city – when the blast occurred, visited the scene on Monday evening and laid flowers at a makeshift shrine.

Russian investigators have given few details. No group has said it was responsible.

European Council President Donald Tusk is due to issue draft guidelines on how the EU intends to negotiate the UK’s departure from the bloc, the BBC reports.

The proposals will be sent to the governments of 27 EU members.

They will help set the tone for two years of tough negotiations and efforts to finalise a deal.

EU leaders say the UK must first agree its exit terms before talks can move on to future ties. London is calling for simultaneous talks.

British Prime Minister Theresa May formally triggered the Brexit process on Wednesday, by sending the Article 50 notification to Mr Tusk.

Eight defendants, including police and journalists, were remanded on Tuesday to stand trial on charges relating to the murder of a prominent Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, Anadolu Agency reports.

Hrant Dink, the founder of the bilingual Armenian-Turkish weekly newspaper Agos, was shot dead in an Istanbul street in January 2007.

Although a suspect was convicted, the case has been re-investigated several times amid concerns that police conspired to allow Dink’s killing to happen.

According to a judicial source who spoke on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on talking to the media, the eight suspects were held on charges of membership of terror organization and “attempting to overthrow the constitutional order”.

Ogun Samast, aged 17 at the time of the killing, claimed he murdered Dink for “insulting Turkishness” and was jailed for 23 years in 2011.

Since then, prosecutors have examined whether he acted alone.

Charles Aznavour says diligence is his ‘most Armenia’ feature. “I don’t believe in inspiration, I believe in sweat,” the legendary French-Armenian singer said in an interview with Russian ahead of his visit to Moscow.

“I forge every word and hone every phrase. If I need days, weeks or months to find the necessary phrase, I stubbornly seek it out,” Aznavour said.

Aznavour is known for his charity, particular his support to Armenia after the devastating earthquake in Spitak.

“This is how my sister Aida and I have been brought up. The fate of our parents, who fled the Armenian genocide, and their behavior, served a role model to us. They often recalled the courage and kindness of an Italian captain, who saved them from death, when they were fleeing Constantinople.  They were already on the ship, when one of the Turkish soldiers heard Armenian speech and ran after them. The captain, however, rushed to protect my parents. I believe they managed to escape due to support and kindness of many people, that’s why they tried to help everyone throughout their lives,” the singer said.

“We lived very modestly, but our doors were always open. My parents were sharing everything they had. During the Second World War they hosted Jews and opponents of the regime,” he added.

Charles Aznavour describes his life as ‘self-conquest.’ “I started from the scratch. I had to learn everything myself. One had to pay for education then, while our family’s means were scarce, that’s why I had to leave school early. From that moment on I have had to achieve everything on my own.

Charles Aznavour will perform in the Kremlin Palace on April 5.

“Terrorism is an evil that can occur anywhere. Therefore, it’s always necessary to be on the alert and take measures,” Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan said in an interview with .

“I understand that large sums are being spent in London and Paris, but this is a crime that can never be predicted. It’s different when you have an obvious enemy. But when people with a different task penetrate into Europe under the cover of migrants is a completely different thing. This is very difficult to fight,” President Sargsyan said.

“Security threats are very different in today’s world. For us, the threat is the situation in our region, i.e. Azerbaijan’s wish to solve the Karabakh issue though force,” President Sargsyan said.

“Armenia is situated about 400 km away from the area of Islamic State activity. This means that the events taking place in the Middle East are directly linked to our security. Considering that many citizens of CIS member states are involved in IS actions, there will sooner or later be people in the region with military experience, with barbaric methods, who will create additional difficulties in this fragile stability. Unfortunately, we already hear Arabic language and different voices across the line of contact. It seems people from the Middle East are gradually getting involved in conflicts in our region. This is of course very dangerous. There are other challenges in the modern world,” he said.

Foreign Minister of the Hellenic Republic Nikolaos Kotzias visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial today.

The Minister laid a wreath at the memorial to Armenian Genocide victims and paid tribute to their memory with a minute of silence.

Accompanied by Director if the Armenian Genocide Museum Institute (AGMI) Hayk Demoyan, Minister Kotzias toured the Museum and left a note in the Memory Book.

Hayk Demoyan presented him the English translation of the book titled “Armenian Genocide: Front page coverage in the world press.”

This April, public television stations across the United States will premiere They shall not perish: The Story of Near East Relief. The documentary is produced by Shant Mardirossian and award-winning writer/director George Billard, the reports.

They Shall Not Perish details the unprecedented humanitarian efforts of thousands of Americans who saved a generation of orphans and refugees after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire during and after World War I.

The one-hour documentary film features the stories of American diplomats, missionaries and relief workers who, as witnesses to the Armenian Genocide, responded to a call to action and mobilized the largest non-governmental international humanitarian movement undertaken by American citizens. Motivated by nothing but a moral sense of duty, these men and women – among them industrialists, ambassadors, teachers, nurses, advertisers and Presidents – helped bring care and comfort to millions of suffering refugees in extremely harrowing circumstances.

Narrated by six-time Emmy award nominated actor Victor Garber, the film is set against a mix of historical footage, archival photographs and utilizes contemporary interviews from leading academic experts such as Taner Akçam, Peter Balakian and Keith David Watenpaugh. In addition, the letters of American officials, relief workers and orphans are brought to life through the voices of leading actors – Michael Aronov, Kathleen Chalfant, Dariush Kashani, Andrea Martin, Ron Rifkin, Tony Shalhoub and Kara Vedder – taking the audience on a journey from the depths of cruelty to the triumphs of survival.

Executive Producer Shant Mardirossian, inspired by his grandparents’ escape and survival during the genocide, says he produced this film “not just to remember those we lost in the genocide, but to shed light on an important chapter of American history when ordinary citizens stood together against a great injustice and saved the lives of 132,000 orphans.” These historic rescue efforts led to the formation of the Near East Relief – known today as the Near East Foundation – an organization that continues to help improve the lives of vulnerable communities and refugees throughout the Middle East and Africa by implementing innovative, community-led economic development initiatives.

With a focus on an often forgotten yet important chapter in American history, They Shall Not Perish challenges the notion of what values a nation should aspire to demonstrate, and raises the question of when and if humanitarian concerns should override strategic national interests. “Today, as we confront an exploding refugee crisis, it’s imperative that we consider the humanitarian consequences when formulating U.S. foreign policy”, says the film’s director, producer and writer George Billard.

Distributed nationally by 3 Roads Communications, They Shall Not Perish premieres on public television stations nationwide beginning April 1, 2017.

The official premiere and discussion with the filmmakers will take place on April 8, 2017 at the Times Center.

AFP – Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan has urged international powers to step up pressure on Azerbaijan to avoid all-out war over the disputed Nagorny Karabakh region, accusing his nation’s arch-foe of military “blackmail”.

“The danger of a new war is constant and will persist until Azerbaijan is persuaded that there is no military solution to the conflict,” Sargsyan told AFP in an interview ahead of a visit to France.

Sargsyan – who will meet French President Francois Hollande in Paris on Wednesday – accused his Azerbaijani counterpart Ilham Aliyev of sabotaging any progress by threatening to start fighting unless he gets his way.

“He said Azerbaijan will not start a war if Armenia fulfils its demands. I said that this is blackmail, not a compromise,” the Armenian leader said.

Sargsyan urged Paris, Moscow, and Washington to “show what price one of the sides will pay if it initiates an attack.”

“That will have a sobering effect,” he said.

“Public opinion in Armenia is that the resumption of hostilities is a matter of time – maybe weeks or months – and the commander-in-chief and defence minister must be prepared that a war could start tomorrow,”Sargsyan said.

“I don’t think a fresh war is an immediate threat, but nothing is ruled out when one deals with an unpredictable neighbour.”

Sargsyan also took aim at Armenia’s longstanding foe Turkey, blasting Ankara’s support for its traditional ally Baku over the Karabakh conflict.

“At this point, the process of normalisation (with Turkey) is in an impasse,” Sargsyan said. “They link normalisation with the Karabakh issue.”

Stressing that international pressure and military parity between Yerevan and Baku have so far helped to avoid a new war, Sargsyan also expressed concern over Russia supplying sophisticated weapons to Azerbaijan worth billions of dollars.

“We take it painfully because Russia is our strategic partner.”