Author: Edgar Tavakalian

Nikolay Ryzhkov, Co-Chairman of the Inter-Parliamentary Commission on Cooperation between the Armenian National Assembly and the Russian Federal Assembly, and members of the Commission visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial today, accompanied by Hermine Naghdalyan, Co-Chair of the Commission, MPs Volodya Badalyan and Levon Martirosyan.

The guests laid flowers at the Eternal Fire and paid tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims with a minute of silence.

Noting that he has been familiar with the tragedy that befell the Armenian in the Ottoman Empire in 1915, Nikolay Ryzhkov said: “Centuries will pass, but the Armenian Genocide will not be forgotten. Four generations have changed in Turkey, but they keep denying the Armenian Genocide. It’s necessary to take steps towards reconciliation of the two peoples.”

“Unfortunately, the tragic events that befell the Armenians 100 years ago continue in Syria and other places today. Their prevention is the sacred mission for you and us,” Ryzhkov said.

The end is near for the building that once housed St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church at the corner of Winter and Main Streets in Lawrence, Massachusetts, reports.

Key architectural features of the 110 Main St. building across from Haverhill City Hall have been removed, interior contents hauled away and the building boarded in preparation for demolition.

Although some expressed concern about the original design of a retail plaza to replace the church, Haverhill Building Inspector Richard Osborne said he is pleased with revised plans the city requested. In its place will go a strip mall with a Domino’s Pizza as the main business.

Late last June, in a 6 to 2 vote, councilors defeated an ordinance which would have granted the Haverhill Historic Commission authority to both delay demolition of properties in the historic district and regulate designs of new buildings. Most councilors argued church parishioners need the money from the sale of the iconic church to complete a new building that has been in the works for 15 years.

Councilor William J. Macek called the quick plan to halt demolition of the church an 11th hour attempt. “I’m not going to roadblock the church or make it any harder,” he said.

St. Gregory the Illuminator Apostolic Church merged in 2002 with Holy Cross Armenian Apostolic Church of Lawrence to form the Armenian Church at Hye Pointe. Rev Vart Gyozalian, pastor, told councilors the church hopes to have its new Bradford building open by next January.

The Russian authorities have provided information about the identity of the two Armenian nationals found dead in New Moscow district, the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs reports.

The Russian law-enforcement bodies have also said the suspect is being sought.

The bodies of two citizens of the Republic of Armenia with gunshot wounds were found in a rented house in New Moscow neighborhood, RIA Novosti reported earlier, quoting sources at the law-enforcement bodies.

A criminal case has been launched under Article 105.2 of the Russian Penal Code (murder of two or more people).

Young heartthrob Hovig Demirdjian will represent Cyprus at next year’s Eurovision song contest to be held in Kiev, Ukraine on May 9-13, the reports.

State broadcaster CyBC, a member of the EBU network that hosts the annual song contest in the previous year’s winning country, said that it had chosen the young singer “because he is especially talented and much loved by the public.”

It added that the composition of the entry song to represent Cyprus has been commissioned to the popular Swedish musician, Thomas G:Son.

The young Armenian singer made headlines when he reached the final stages of the Greek reality talent show, X-Factor, and from then on saw his musical career surge, as a singer songwriter, performing in Greece, the Middle East and more recently in Russia. He was a finalist among candidates for this year’s entry and had attempted several times in the past as well.

On his facebook page, Hovig posted, “Nai! (that’s Greek for yes), that’s all I said to CyBC when they popped the Eurovision question.”

“This year, I intend to work very hard, day and night, to deliver the best possible performance in Kiev.”

“Cyprus is a diverse (and hot) island. Diversity runs in our ideas, our people, our music. Our small island is an oasis of awesome talented people with amazing Mediterranean temperament.”

He concluded, “Eurovision is happening guys and it’s going to be fun. Let’s do this!”

Photo: Reuters

Islamic State (IS) militants have mounted a ferocious counter-attack in north Iraq, killing at least 19 people in and around the city of Kirkuk, the BBC reports.

They attacked government buildings, killing at least six police officers, and a power station under construction, where 13 employees died, officials say.

Twelve IS fighters also reportedly died and fighting seems to be continuing.

Government and Kurdish forces began a long-awaited operation against the IS capital in Iraq, Mosul, on Monday.

Mosul lies 170km to the north-east of Kirkuk, a multi-ethnic city claimed both by Iraq’s central government and the Kurds.

Government forces said on Friday they had regained control of a further two villages – al-Awaizat and Nanaha – south of Mosul, evacuating 65 displaced families and killing 15 IS militants.

Armenia’s border guards are better trained to counter the illegal transport and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction thanks to border security and interdiction training provided by the U.S. The 10-day training session is the latest part of a joint U.S.-Armenian project to improve Armenia’s abilities in this fight against contraband.

From October 10 to 21, 27 Armenian border guards who serve along the Armenian-Georgian border attended training on viable border interdiction strategies that stressed the necessity for interagency cooperation. The border guards were introduced to new tools that can be used to maintain security and aid in border monitoring. The course also included sessions on basic tracking skills, operations management, safety, and evidence control.

The course, which was moderated by border security subject matter experts, consisted of lectures and practical exercises, culminating with several full-scale interdiction exercises. The training was conducted by the U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) Cooperative Threat Reduction Program’s WMD-Proliferation Prevention Program.

Out of the dozens of agents participating in this month’s course, 12 will go on to receive additional training to become instructors. This will enable Armenian authorities to institutionalize the training locally and ensure all Armenian border guards eventually receive the training they need to succeed.

The U.S. Embassy in Yerevan, the U.S. Department of Defense, the National Security Service of Armenia, and the Armenian Border Guards have a long history of cooperative efforts aimed at reducing the threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.Since 2011, the U.S. Department of Defense, through DTRA’s Cooperative Threat Reduction Program, has provided $21.3 million in aid to properly train and equip Armenian border guards

Jose Mourinho is closer to fielding Henrikh Mkhitaryan for only the sixth time in a competitive match after reporting Manchester United’s first Armenian star is now fit and training well, Manchester United’s official website reports.

Mkhitaryan has been unavailable since making his solitary start for the Reds in the Manchester City match at Old Trafford – prior to that, he had come on as a substitute in the Community Shield triumph against Leicester City and opening three Premier League victories over Bournemouth, Southampton and Hull City.

When asked at his pre-match press conference if Henrikh could return in Thursday’s Europa League clash at home to Fenerbahce, the United manager replied:

“He was injured and he was injured for quite a long time. Now, he’s not injured anymore.

“He’s training with the team without any limitation. I cannot confirm if he’s [ready] for tomorrow or not, but he’s fit and it’s now time for him to go back to the levels we know that he can achieve.”

Photo: EPA/THOMAS RASSLOFF

 

Russian and Syrian aircraft have stopped airstrikes in Aleppo area from 10 a.m. (07:00 GMT) Tuesday to introduce a humanitarian pause on October 20,  Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu said on Tuesday, TASS reports.

“The airstrikes of Russia’s Aerospace Forces and Syria’s Air Force stop in the Aleppo area from 10 a.m.,” the minister said. “The long-term suspension of airstrikes is necessary to introduce a “humanitarian pause” on October 20,” he said.

This will allow “guaranteeing security of exit via six corridors for civilians and preparing for evacuation of those ill and wounded from the eastern part of Aleppo,” he said.

“We turn to the leadership of the countries having influence on the armed units in the eastern part of Aleppo with a proposal to convince their leaders to stop combat actions and leave the city,” Shoigu said.

“By the start of a “humanitarian pause” the Syrian forces will be withdrawn to the distances allowing militants to freely leave eastern Aleppo with arms via two specially created corridors: the first on the Castello road and the second in the area of market Souq al Hai,” he added.

Russia’s military announced plans to organize a “humanitarian pause” in Aleppo on Monday. Thus, the Russian Aerospace Forces and the Syrian army will stop delivering strikes from 08:00 a.m. to 16:00 Moscow time on October 20, Lieutenant General Sergei Rudskoi, the chief of the main operations directorate of the Russian General Staff, said.

Photo: AP

 

Antonio Guterres, the man formally nominated to be the next UN secretary general, says he plans to “serve the most vulnerable,” the BBC reports.

The former Portuguese prime minister said he felt both “gratitude and humility” by the appointment.

He said he would serve the “victims of conflicts, of terrorism, rights violations, poverty and injustices of this world”.

Mr Guterres was unanimously nominated by the UN Security Council on Thursday.

The UN General Assembly is expected to meet next week to approve his five-year appointment.

The 67-year-old, who led the UN refugee agency for 10 years, will take over from Ban Ki-moon early next year.

He paid tribute to Ban Ki-moon and called on UN members states to “strongly support him in his actions and his initiatives” in his final months in office.

“I have two words to describe what I’m feeling now – gratitude and humility,” Mr Guterres said in Lisbon.

“Humility [is what I feel] about the huge challenges ahead of us, the terrible complexity of the modern world. But it is also humility that is required to serve the most vulnerable, victims of conflicts, of terrorism, rights violations, poverty and injustices of this world”.

The delegation headed by Armenia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Ashot Hovakimyan participated in the 67th session of the Executive Committee of the Programme of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees held in Geneva October 3-7.

Opening remarks by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon were followed by UNHCR Filippo Grandi’s speech.

Referring to the global challenges related to refugees, Ashot Hovakimyan pledged Armenia’s willingness to continue the effective cooperation with the UNHCR Office to address the needs of displaced people and support the refugees and asylum seekers.

The Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister referred to the issue of Armenian refugees, who have been forced to leave their homes in Azerbaijan because of the latter’s policy of ethnic cleansing. He presented the Azerbaijani military aggression against Nagorno Karabakh unleashed in April this year, which was accompanied by harsh violations of international humanitarian law.

Ashot Hovakimyan noted that Armenia has provided refuge to more than 20 thousand Syrian refugees, being the third country in Europe with the number of Syrian refugees hosted.

In response to Armenia’s delegate’s speech, High Commissioner Filippo Grandi noted that the UNHCR Office will maintain support for the solution of problems displaced people face. He attached importance to the soonest resolution of the Karabakh conflict and expressed his support to the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs’ efforts.