Author: David Nargizian

Tehran Calls for Restraint by Armenian Parties

David Nargizian
Financial Tribune, Iran
Feb 27 2021

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has called on Armenian parties to exercise restraint and avoid violence amid disputes between the military and the government in Yerevan.

In a statement on Thursday, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said Iran is closely monitoring developments in neighboring country, the ministry’s website reported. 

The Armenian Army issued a statement on Thursday, demanding Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s resignation.

The prime minister then accused top military officers of attempting a coup, prompting a rally of thousands of supporters.

The army’s demand came in response to the prime minister’s handling of Armenia’s conflict with the Republic of Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, which ended in November 2020 with Azeri forces making territorial gains.

The mountain region is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan, but is populated and claimed by ethnic Armenians. Fierce fighting broke out between the two in September, but ended with a Russian-brokered ceasefire about a month later. 

Iran also offered its peace initiative and called for the return of all occupied lands of Azerbaijan by Armenia and respect for international borders while the security of ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region is protected.

     

Armenia to use Sputnik V, AstraZeneca, Pfizer vaccines against COVID-19

David Nargizian

 14:05, 18 February, 2021

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 18, ARMENPRESS. Vaccinations against COVID-19 in Armenia are expected to start in March, Minister of Healthcare Anahit Avanesyan told reporters after the Cabinet meeting, adding that the vaccinations will be carried out on voluntary basis, and the vaccine for risky group citizens will be for free.

“Small number of vaccines have already been used in Armenia, in particular several people have been vaccinated with Sputnik V which was received from Russia as a gift. Armenia will receive more doses in the near future and will be able to start the vaccinations for broader public circles. Risky group citizens will get the vaccine for free, but as for the price of the vaccine for other citizens, it’s still unclear”, the minister said.

He added that the government will import only those vaccines which have successfully passed the third stage of clinical trials. “The group of specialists will assess their efficiency, the risk of side-effects, the cost and will give their conclusion on the appropriateness of their use. So far, the professional commission, the experts have considered the use of AstraZeneca, Pfizer and the Russian Sputnik V vaccines. There are only issues connected with ensuring the thermal regime of Pfizer, which must be solved. The amount of vaccines to be imported by Armenia will depend on several factors, including their cost and how much money the state can provide for them”, he said.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Opposition to start non-stop protests throughout Armenia starting Monday – Ishkhan Saghatelyan

David Nargizian
Panorama, Armenia
Feb 20 2021

“Starting Monday, mass protest actions will start in Armenia to make this evil government resign,” the coordinator at opposition Homeland Salvation Movement Ishkhan Saghatelyan told reporters during the protest march after the rally at Liberty Square. 

In Saghatelyan’s words, the persistent plan of the opposition is to keep in pressure ‘the evil government’ and make them retreat and resign.  

The opposition representative pointed to the Saturday’s rally at Liberty Square, saying the people proved that the current leaders of Armenia have nothing to do and should immediately leave. “Coming to the square in this weather the people proved that they will always struggle and be victorious and have no plan to reconcile with the existing reality,” added the ARFD member. 

To note, following the rally, thousands of the protesters started marches in different directions through central streets in Yerevan.   

MP Rustam Bakoyan to be appointed head of Armenia-Iraq parliamentary friendship group

David Nargizian

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 12:32, 8 February, 2021

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 8, ARMENPRESS. Member of Parliament of Armenia from the ruling My Step faction Rustam Bakoyan, representing the Yazidi community of Armenia, will be appointed head of the Armenia-Iraq parliamentary friendship group.

The respective draft decision is included in the agenda of the Parliament’s Council session scheduled on February 8.

Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan

Azerbaijani Forces Must be Banned from Syunik Roads, Says Rights Defender

David Nargizian

February 11,  2021



An Azerbaijan soldier on a road in Syunik Province

The presence of the Azerbaijani armed forces in the communities or on the roads connecting the municipalities in the Syunik Province, as well as any of their movement through those roads must be banned, said Armenia’s Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan on Thursday.

“They [Azerbaijani forces] are there despite their gross violations of the rights of peaceful civilians and servicemen of Armenia and Artsakh, ethnic cleansing and mass destruction of peaceful communities, constant institutional Armenophobia, torture and ill treatment, illegally holding prisoners of war, new war threats, the ‘determination’ of borders with mechanical approaches through gross violations of the international rules,” said Tatoyan.

“The presence of these Azerbaijani servicemen, first of all grossly violate the rights of the border residents of Armenia or are seriously endangering them,” added Tatoyan explaining the seizure of property and indiscriminate firing of weapons.

“Therefore, no matter what happens, their presence or movement is illegal, has no legal precedence and contradicts the foundations of the human rights system in the international law,” explained the human rights defender, who said that his office carries out its responsibilities based on this fundamental concepts on all fronts.

Asbarez: Foreign Ministry Responds to ANC International’s Concerns

David Nargizian

February 11,  2021



Armenia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Anna Naghdalyan

Armenia has not reevaluated its assessment of Turkey’s destructive role in the region, said Armenia’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Anna Naghdalyan on Thursday, in response to a statement issued by the Armenian National Committee-International that criticized Armenia’s Foreign Minister Ara Aivazyan, who on Wednesday said “Turkey no longer has any reason to keep its border with Armenia closed.”

“We highly appreciate the cooperation between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the offices and committees of the Armenian National Committee, which have always been aimed at advancing our national Armenian agenda,” Naghdalyan said.

She claimed that the concerns contained in the ANC International statement were taken out of context, and in no way reflect Armenia’s assessment and approaches to Turkey’s involvement in the region.

“Armenia has not reevaluated its assessment of Turkey’s destructive involvement in the region, and those concerns were clearly stated in the question-and-answer session, in particular, regarding the conduct of the joint Turkish-Azerbaijani military exercises near the Armenian border. At the same time, the Armenian Foreign Minister referred to Turkey’s illegal blockade of Armenia, insisting that at the present time there is not even an excuse referring to the fact that Turkey has closed its border with Armenia for decades,” she added.

The spokesperson emphasized that all previous governments of Armenia, as well as leading organizations in the Diaspora, have always considered the blockade illegal, and have acted from the position of ending it.

“The position of the Republic of Armenia on this issue has not changed, neither has the determination to pursue the priorities of the foreign policy of the Republic of Armenia. We are convinced that Turkey’s direct involvement in the war unleashed by Azerbaijan against the people of Artsakh, the war crimes committed against the people of Artsakh and other mass crimes make the international recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide more urgent in order to prevent the reoccurrence of such crimes in the future,” Naghdalyan stated.

She stressed that Armenia will continue its close cooperation with respected Diaspora Armenian organizations.

She further emphasized that the Foreign Minister has noted on various occasions that “we will consider Turkey’s actions, not statements,” and added that to date, these actions have not been constructive.

“In this regard, we would like to quote the position of the Foreign Minister, expressed during the same question-and-answer session, that ‘a favorable atmosphere should be created around Armenia, our diplomacy and our people, naturally, without breaking the red lines, protecting our state-national interests.’”

Armenian-Made Kamikaze Drones Undergoing Tests

David Nargizian
The Defense Post, India 
Feb 12 2021
Inder Singh Bisht

Armenia is testing an unspecified number of kamikaze or suicide drones, Minister of High Tech Industry Hakob Arshakyan revealed at a press conference.

Following “state testing,” the drones will undergo a combat test, and if cleared, will be followed by mass production, the minister added.

The development is significant, as the Caucasus nation suffered huge losses during the Nagorno Karabakh war last year due to the Azeri army’s use of Turkish-made combat drones. Azerbaijan’s deployment of these drones was an important factor in the outcome of the conflict.

Arshakyan said dozens of government-funded projects for the development of combat and reconnaissance drones are in various stages of development at the moment.

“Part of them are now reaching their logical completion. We are already achieving industrial capabilities in terms of both strike and reconnaissance drones,” the minister said.

“Reconnaissance UAVs that are not lagging behind parameter-wise from similar drones can already be manufactured in Armenia.”

Arshakyan also disclosed that the country’s army “widely” used indigenous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) in the Nagorno Karabakh war, adding that home-grown radar technologies were also deployed in the air defense system during the conflict.

“In this direction we will continue funding – radar systems, communication systems, optical and surveillance, laser systems,” Arshakyan said.

“In terms of optical surveillance systems we also have rather serious developments, and already industrial capacity, soon we will expand this and greater opportunities will be created both in terms of our military supplies and exports.’’

Arshakyan said that the government has recognized the defense industry as a priority, displaying confidence that an army request for ammunition will be met this year solely through domestic production.

“I am referring to artillery measures, mortars, grenade launchers, and other directions. Rather serious investments were made in Armenia. And in this regard we already have an industrial process and the opportunity for expanding it in 2021,” he said.

Armenian American Museum Announces General Contractor Search

David Nargizian

February 12,  2021



An architect’s rendering of the Armenian American Museum

GLENDALE—The Armenian American Museum and Cultural Center of California is seeking a General Contractor for the construction of the landmark center slated for summer groundbreaking.

The museum has issued a Request for Qualifications for interested General Contractors. The RFQ response deadline for interested General Contractors is March 5.

The museum anticipates the selection and appointment of the General Contractor in Spring 2021.

The Armenian American Museum will rise to a two-level 50,820 square foot museum complex built on a one-level semi-subterranean parking garage. The first level will feature the grand lobby, auditorium, learning center, demonstration kitchen, gift shop, and administrative offices. The second level will be dedicated to the permanent and temporary exhibition galleries as well as the collections archives.

The cultural and educational center’s programming plans include producing and hosting powerful, immersive, and thought-provoking permanent and temporary exhibitions, leading meaningful dialogues and discussions through engaging public programs, providing educational programs for adults, youth, kids, and families, preserving Armenian heritage through the museum’s collections and archives, and serving as an iconic venue for memorable experiences, gatherings, and celebrations.

The Armenian American Museum will be constructed in Central Park in Glendale, California. The museum has secured a long-term ground lease for up to 95 years with the City of Glendale for the city-owned property.

For more information, visit the website.

The mission of the Armenian American Museum and Cultural Center of California is to promote understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Armenian American experience. The vision is a cultural campus that enriches the community, educates the public on the Armenian American story, and empowers individuals to embrace cultural diversity and speak out against prejudice.

The Tragic Untold Story of the 19th Century Armenian Genocide

David Nargizian
The Grunge
Feb 9 2021
THE TRAGIC UNTOLD STORY OF THE 19TH CENTURY ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

BY MARINA MANOUKIAN – FEB. 9, 2021 

According to the University of Minnesota, many consider the Hamidian massacres of 1894-1896 to be a “dress rehearsal” for the 1915 Armenian Genocide. The Hamidian massacres were a little less systematic than the Genocide was. Though ironically, it was the Young Turks, the revolutionary opponents to the Hamidian regime, who expanded upon “Abdülhamid’s vision of imperial preservation,” as Ronald Grigor Suny wrote in “The Hamidian Massacres, 1894-1897: Disinterring a Buried History,” posted at Open Edition Journals.

Hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives, and the number of forced conversions was also very high, although this offered no guarantee of protection. In the province of Harput alone, there were at least 15,000. According to “The 1895-1896 Armenian Massacres in Harput” by Deborah Mayersen, also posted at Open Edition Journals, local officials even reached out to the government, which gave its official position on November 14, 1895, stating that Armenians should essentially “apply again when order is restored, then their conversions can be processed according to the proper procedure.”

The National Council for the Social Studies (posted at Genocide Education) writes that thousands of Armenians also escaped, becoming refugees in Europe and the United States. Others went to Russia, and found themselves deported back to the Ottoman Empire by the end of the century, per the Journal of Historical Sociology (posted by the Wiley Online Library).

And while Sultan Abdülhamid II downplayed the massacres, the next generation was taking notes. This is the tragic untold story of the 19th century Armenian genocide.

LEADING UP TO THE MASSACRES

Heritage Images/Getty Images

During the end of the 19th century, Sultan Abdülhamid II was faced with what he considered “the Armenian Question.” As Sara Cohan writes in “A Brief History of the Armenian Genocide” (posted at Olma.org), the 1878 Treaty of Berlin had meant to provide Ottoman Armenians with more rights, “including fair taxation practices, protections from tribal attacks, and the right to give evidence in Ottoman courts of law,” but Sultan Abdülhamid II never granted Ottoman Armenians these rights.

This mainly occurred because, according to the National Council for the Social Studies, Sultan Abdülhamid II had also replaced the Russians in the role of “ensuring that the Armenians in Ottoman territory would gain more rights.” As a result, the promised reforms never came. In response, Ottoman Armenians continued protesting the various discriminatory laws.

Two revolutionary parties, the Hunchak and the Dashnaktsutyun, had also emerged, and though neither were too popular, Sultan Abdülhamid II was still worried about their influence, per Encyclopedia Britannica. However, as Ronald Grigor Suny notes in “The Hamidian Massacres, 1894-1897,” the later “massacres were more likely to occur where there were no revolutionaries than in places (like Van) where Armenians activists were more numerous,” although this is not to say that Van wasn’t also targeted. The History Net writes how Van resisted the Hamidian massacres, although the “cityscape was still scarred by numerous burned and pillaged Armenian homes and properties.”

TARGETING ARMENIANS ACROSS THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

Library of Congress/Wikipedia Commons
One of the first massacres occurred in 1894, when Armenians in the Sasun region were protesting an oppressive tax. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, Kurdish tribesmen and Ottoman soldiers burned several villages and killed thousands of Armenians in response.

According to The Thirty-Year Genocide by Benny Morris and Dror Ze’evi, in 1891, Sultan Abdülhamid II had also created the Hamidiye Light Calvalry Regiments. Recruiting Turks and Kurds, their job was to “incorporate or at least to neutralize the non-state spaces” that the state couldn’t govern, though they were mainly deployed to places with high Armenian populations. The Hamidiye also joined in on the massacres, propelled by the sultan’s sectarian rhetoric that aimed to “replace the multiethnic commitments and religious toleration of Ottomanism.”

Another protest in September 1895 (per Armenian-Genocide.org) in Constantinople, now known as Istanbul, also turned into a massacre after police responded to a demonstration. According to Facing History, another non-violent demonstration one month later, on October 1, also “turned into a slaughter.” Soon, massacres had erupted in almost “every major Armenian-inhabited town of the empire.” Across the empire, from Constantinople to Erzurum, the massacres continued for another two years.

One of the worst atrocities occurred in December 1895, when 3,000 Armenian women and children, who had taken refuge inside the Armenian cathedral of Urfa, were trapped and burned alive. Children in History writes that the massacres lasted until 1897, and claimed between 80,000 and 300,000 lives.

INDISCRIMINATE ANTI-CHRISTIAN POGROMS

W. L. Sachtleben/Wikipedia Commons
Although initially Armenians were the main targets of the massacres, soon others of Christian faith, like Assyrians and Greeks, also came under attack. Greek City Times writes that the Massacre of Amida, also known as the Massacre of Diyarbakır, resulted in the deaths of 100,000 Greeks and 25,000 Assyrians.

In “Native Christians Massacred” (posted at Scholar Commons at the University of South Florida), Hannibal Travis notes that a description of the city of Diyarbakır in 1895 from the French vice-counsul “reminds us of Kristallnacht in Nazi Germany.” Facing History notes that while Ottoman officials repeatedly claimed that the massacres were in response to an armed rebellion, it was clear to observers that the massacres “followed a similar pattern.”

The bodies were also often mutilated. The Turks Before the Court of History quotes W. L. Sachtleben, an American who was in the Ottoman Empire photographing during the massacres, describes the bodies as “fearfully mangled and mutilated.” The bodies were so mutilated, that Sachtleben initially thought the damage was done by dogs. 

In “The Hamidian Massacres,” Suny notes that mostly the world reacted with indifference. Many bought into the provocation theory, and when accounts were reported in American newspapers, they were accused of engaging in “atrocities pornography.” But by 1897, the international community was openly disparaging Sultan Abdülhamid II’s actions, and as a result the massacres started to peter out.

During World War I, the Ottoman Empire also went on to commit systematic genocide against the Assyrians and the Greeks, in addition to the Armenians.

Lilit Tadevosyan elected President of Court of Cassation

David Nargizian

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 17:57, 9 February, 2021
YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 9, ARMENPRESS. The National Assembly of Armenia elected Lilit Tadevosyan President of the Court of Cassation of Armenia by a secret vote, ARMENPRESS reports Chairman of the National Assembly Counting Committee Vahagn Hovakimyan announced at the parliament.

103 MPs participated in the voting. 102 voted in favor and 1 against.

Lilit Tadevosyan  was born in 1978, in Yerevan.

1993 – Graduated from the Russian secondary school # 182 in Yerevan with a gold medal in the same year entered and graduated with honors in 1998 from the Law Faculty of Yerevan State University.

1998 – 2001 Graduated from Postgraduate studies of Yerevan State University.

2001 – YSU Academic Council, received PhD in Law.

1998 – June 2012 – Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Armenia.

12.1998 – 01.1999 – intern-investigator of the Erebuni administrative district prosecutor’s office.

01.1999 – 04.2001 – Investigator of the Erebuni and Nubarashen community prosecutor’s office.

04.2001 – 11.2004 – Senior investigator of the same prosecutor’s office.

11.2004 – 05.2006 – Assistant to the same community prosecutor.

05.2006 – 11.2007 – Prosecutor of the Criminal Investigation Department of the RA Prosecutor General’s Office.

11.2007 -10.2011 – Prosecutor of the Department for Corruption and Organized Crimes of the General Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Armenia.

10.2011 – 30.06.2012 – senior prosecutor of the same department.

She was a member of the Scientific-Methodical Council of the RA General Prosecutor’s Office.

2nd Class Advisor of Justice.

09.2000 – 09.2011 – lecturer at Yerevan State University Law Faculty, and since 2010 up to now, at the Law Faculty of the Armenian-Russian (Slavonic) University. She has also lectured at the “Prosecutor’s Office School” SNCO.

2006 – 2010 was a doctoral student of the Moscow State University of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation.

2010 – doctoral thesis. The Scientific Council of the same University and awarded her the degree of Doctor of Law from the Higher Qualification Commission of the Russian Federation.

The diploma of the candidate of juridical sciences has been certified by the Federal Service for Supervision of Education and Science of the Russian Federation, and the Diploma of Doctor of Law is certified by the Higher Qualification Committee of the Republic of Armenia.

She has participated in many international conferences (Republic of Armenia, Russian Federation, Arab Republic of Egypt, Georgia) and received certificates.

2003 – Training courses at the Center for Organized Crime and Corruption at the St. Petersburg State University, and in 2005, at the St. Petersburg School of Criminal Law and Criminology at the same university, and received relevant certificates.

She is a member of the Professional Council of the Higher Qualification Commission of the Armenian-Russian (Slavonic) University, a member of the Scientific Council of Law and Policy Institute of the same University.

Author of over 60 scientific works published in the Republic of Armenia and the Russian Federation, including 5 monographs.

2007 – awarded with “Fridtjof Nansen” Gold Medal, in 2012 – RA Prime Minister’s letter of gratitude.

On 30 June, 2012 by the decree of the RA President she was appointed judge of the RA Criminal Court of Appeals.

By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Armenia on 22 September, 2016 she was appointed Judge of the Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation.

At the Recommendation provided by the SJC Decision-25-N -54 and the Presidential Decree of 20 July, 2016, she was appointed Chairperson of the Criminal Chamber of the Court of Cassation for a six-year term.