Author: Harutyunian Christine

MEDVEDEV TARJOUTUU VALITTAJAKSI ARMENIAN JA AZERBAIDZHANIN KIISTASSA

MTV3
21.10.2008 17:37
Finland

Venaja on valmis valittajaksi Armenian ja Azerbaidzhanin kiistassa
Vuoristo-Karabahin alueesta. Armeniassa vieraillut presidentti Dmitri
Medvedev toivoo, etta asiaa koskeva huippukokous voitaisiin jarjestaa
lahiaikoina.

– Toivon, etta kokous pidetaan Venajalla, presidentti
tarkentaa. Medvedev on tanaan paattanyt valtiovierailunsa Armeniassa.

Vuoristo-Karabahin konflikti on noussut kuumaksi kysymykseksi Georgian
sodan jalkimainingeissa. Alue sijaitsee Azerbaidzhanin sisalla,
mutta on armenialaisenemmistoinen ja itsenaisyyshaluinen. Armenia ja
Azerbaidzhan kavivat alueesta verisen sodan 1990-luvun alussa. Sodan
jalkeen Vuoristo-Karabah on ollut kaytannossa itsenainen, mutta
kahakointi jatkuu edelleen.

Armenian presidentti Serzh Sarkisian vastaa Medvedevin ehdotukseen
olevansa valmis keskusteluihin, jos lahtokohdaksi otetaan
Vuoristo-Karabahin itsemaaraamisoikeus. Mahdollisista neuvotteluista
odotetaan kuitenkin erittain hankalia.

"WE SHALL HAVE A GREAT DEFICIT"

A1+
[01:51 pm] 22 October, 2008

Economist Bagrat Asatryan, ex President of the Central Bank, doesn’t
think the recent rise in prices is only determined by the rise in
prices at the international market.

"Even an ordinary consumer can notice this marked characteristic: the
prices regularly go up in Armenia. Surely, it is somehow resulted by
prices at the international market but we never react to the slumps at
the international market. Nothing changes in our country when prices
go down at the international market," Bagrat Asatryan said to A1+.

The economist notes that prices mainly shoot up after elections,
especially presidential ones. "It is notable that authorities usually
hold down prices during election campaigns to curb people’s wrath. They
imitate to care for people. But they show their true colours at
post-election periods when prices skyrocket all of a sudden," notes
Mr. Asatryan. "This oligarchic and monopolistic system pursues only
one goal – to double incomes under the auspices of authorities."

The CB ex president says the authorities had better act and find a
way to surmount the economic crisis.

"The other day I saw Serzh Sargsyan meet with the CB President
and give assignments. I am sorry to say that his behaviour
is inadmissible today. Maybe in the 60s it would work but not
nowadays. It also suggests that the given bodies have no notion of
their responsibilities. The Central Bank is an independent body,
meanwhile the President gives them assignments. I think in this case
we have nothing to be proud of."

With regard to the dollar-dram fluctuations the economist said :
"Unlike the previous years the exchange rate remained the same in
2008. Even the dram has devaluated a little."

"The balance of payments will be frustrated this year. The deficit
will mount to 3 milliards. Decrease of currency flow will result in
fluctuations of exchange rate, while the ongoing rise in prices will
bring about devaluation."

PRESS RELEASE
Diocese of the Armenian Church of Australia & New Zealand
10 Macquarie Street
Chatswood NSW 2067
AUSTRALIA
Contact: Laura Artinian
Tel: (02) 9419-8056
Fax: (02) 9904-8446
Email: [email protected]

22 October 08

INAUGURAL ARMENIAN LANGUAGE TEACHERS’ SYMPOSIUM IN AUSTRALIA

Sydney, Australia – On Sunday, 19 October, 2008 Armenian language teachers
from Sydney and Melbourne gathered in good number in the Edgarian Hall of
the Armenian Apostolic Church of Holy Resurrection for the first ever
symposium that brought together the educators of the children of our
community. It was by no coincidence that the conference was scheduled to
correspond with the period of celebration of the Holy Translators and the
founding of the Armenian alphabet held in October.

In collaboration with the Armenian Apostolic Church of Holy Resurrection,
the Hamazkaine Regional Committee and Armenian General Benevolent Union
engaged in this project under the auspices of His Eminence Archbishop Aghan
Baliozian, Primate of the Diocese of the Armenian Church of Australia and
New Zealand. Principals of the Armenian Schools of Sydney initiated an
outline of what the project should embody which was then assigned to a
committee to undertake. The committee members appointed were highly
respected Armenian language teachers: Mrs Lilig Godoyan, Mrs Seta
Keoshgerian and Mrs Betty Marashlian.

Teachers attending the symposium represented the three Armenian day
schools – Hamazkaine Arshak & Sophie Galstaun College, AGBU Alexander
Primary School, St Gregory’s Armenian School – and Saturday Schools –
Hamazkaine Tarkmanchadz, Toumanian and Papazian Schools, AGBU Alec Manoogian
School, and Aginian School (Melbourne).

The program for the afternoon commenced with prayer followed by an opening
address by committee member Mrs Seta Keoshgerian. The first keynote speaker
of the day was Mr Sarkis Manoukian who spoke on "The Armenian Language as a
Second Language – Teaching Issues, Considerations and Method" after which
discussions took place. Mrs Lilig Godoyan presented an account of the Second
International Armenian Education Conference in Armenia and what it had to
offer Diasporan communities. The third speaker for the afternoon was Mrs
Zepur Mouradian who expressed a parent’s view on the role of parents in the
Armenian education of children.

A two-part film presentation was screened to get acquainted with Armenia
after which Archbishop Baliozian addressed the teachers with his closing
remarks. He was delighted and fulfilled this opportunity had come to
fruition and for so many Armenian teachers to come together in the sanctuary
of the church surrounds to learn, share, contribute and build a vital
network that connects the community through the education of our dear
children. As well as community unity and community pride, the occasion
brought personal reward for each teacher realising that each is not alone in
their endeavour but part of a wider community. Archbishop appreciated the
openness and honesty of discussions that took place during the forum which
pinpointed strengths and weaknesses in our community schools and education
system.

"It was our hope that this inaugural symposium would enlighten our community
teachers and judging by the reactions, the future of these forums is now
established. To develop our Armenian teachers to face challenges and equip
them with skills and confidence through learning opportunities like this and
workshops, to establish foundation principles for Armenian education in our
environment and to build a support network among teachers are fundamental
beliefs that will maintain the integrity and future of this undertaking."

Archbishop Baliozian also remarked on the role and responsibility of the
Church in upholding the framework of education in our communities.
"Regrettably, over the years our history shows the role of the church has
diminished somewhat in this area as community organisations have developed
and taken on the role of education provider. Today, the Church is committed
to supporting and bringing greater involvement in the education process and
will review ways in which it can bring its positive contribution in the
future."

All teachers attending the Symposium received Certificates of Participation.
Committee member, Mrs Betty Marashlian also presented a select group of
teachers with Certificates of Recognition for years of dedicated teaching
and service to their respective school communities. The successful
recipients had been nominated by their School Principals to receive the
Award.

The afternoon concluded with refreshments prepared by the Church Ladies
Auxiliary and the warm, casual atmosphere provided opportunity for teachers
to mingle freely with each other establishing new bonds and connecting with
colleagues.

RUSSIA’S MEDVEDEV PUSHES NAGORNO-KARABAKH TALKS
By Denis Dyomkin

Reuters UK
Tue Oct 21, 2008 3:26pm BST
UK

YEREVAN, Oct 21 (Reuters) – Russian President Dmitry Medvedev,
projecting Moscow’s diplomatic clout in the Caucasus, pushed on Tuesday
to bring the leaders of Armenia and Azerbaijan together for talks on
breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s ethnic Armenian population broke away from
Azerbaijan in a war as the Soviet Union fell apart and now runs its own
affairs, with support from Armenia. It has declared its independence,
but is unrecognised by any state.

Armenian President Serzh Sarksyan and Azerbaijan’s Ilham Aliyev last
met on the issue in early June, but the war in Georgia in August
appears to have lent fresh impetus to diplomatic efforts to resolve
the conflict.

The war in Georgia erupted when Moscow sent troops to crush a bid
by Georgian troops to reassert control over the breakaway region of
South Ossetia, another "frozen conflict" arising from the break-up
of the Soviet Union.

Visiting staunch ally Armenia, Medvedev said the war in Georgia had
shown the need to resolve disputes "on the basis of international
principles and by negotiations."

Armenia and Azerbaijan have never signed a peace treaty, and
Azerbaijan has not ruled out using force to restore its control over
Nagorno-Karabakh.

"I hope we are in an advanced stage now," Medvedev said after talks
with Sarksyan.

"Both sides are ready to seek solutions," he said, adding that he hoped
to meet together with Sarksyan and Aliyev "in the very near future."

"I hope such a meeting will take place in Russia."

Azeri ally and NATO member Turkey had taken the diplomatic lead in
the wake of the August war. Medvedev’s initative will be seen as a
response, in a region where Russia and the West are vying for influence
over vital energy transit routes from Central Asia to Western markets.

Diplomats say that, without Russia, little headway can be made on the
‘frozen conflicts’.

Russia’s war with Georgia deepened concern in the West over the
reliability of the Caucasus energy corridor.

Armenia is considered Russia’s strongest ally in the region, but is
also being courted by the United States. Yerevan is a member of NATO’s
Partnership for Peace programme, and hosted alliance exercises over
the past three weeks. (Writing by Matt Robinson, editing by Richard
balmforth)

AMERIABANK COMPLETES PLACEMENT OF BONDS OF IMEX GROUP

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 16, NOYAN TAPAN. On September 15 Ameriabank
successfully completed the placement of Imex Group company’s 100,000
coupon bonds of the total amount of 1 billion drams (aout 3.3 million
USD). The nominal value of a bond is 10,00 drams, with a circulation
period of 24 months. This was announced at the October 16 press
conference with the participation of the head of Imex Group’s
presidential staff Tigran Galstian, the director of Ameriabank’s
development department Tigran Jrbashian, the director of the investment
banking operations department Andrey Shinkevich and the director of the
commercial operations department Sergei Shevchenko.

In the words of T. Galstian, the placement of the bonds bears evidence
of the investors’ trust in Imex Group. He stated that the issuing of
bonds will have continuous character, and other instruments of money
attraction will be used.

A. Shinkevich in his turn said that the placement of bonds was done in
the hard situation in Armenia’s securities market as a result of the
international financial crisis. He expressed a positive opinion about
the fact the bonds were placed among over 40 investors – legal and
natural persons, with insurance and investment compnaies being most
active. By official data of Ameriabank, such a wide range of investors
is unique in the Armenian market. During the placement, Ameriabank used
a competitive mechanism of placement for the first time in the
country’s corporate bond market when the investors proposed a level of
yield instead of establishment of a fixed level of yield by the placing
body. As a result of the use of the competitive mechanism, the yield of
Imex Group’s bonds made 11-11.5%.

S. Shevchenko said that within the next five days Ameriabank will
finish listing of Imex Group’s bonds on the Armenian Stock Exchange,
after which the bonds will be quoted at about a 11% annual yield level,
while the difference in sale and purchase prices will make 0.5% at the
maxiumum. In his opinion, these indices will be competitive. It was
mentioned that the bank will also conclude repo deals with these
securities for a period from 7 days to 3 months. Ameriabank purchased
15% of Imex Group’s bonds so as to implement their real price quotation.

The coupons of Imex Group’s bonds will be paid once a quarter. The
investors were also given the right of early redemption (sale option)
one year after the placement. The open subscription for bonds lasted
until October 10, the placement – until October 13-15.

HOVIK ABRAHAMIAN CALLS JOURNALISTS FOR BEING OBJECTIVE, CONSCIENTIOUS,
AND HONEST

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 15, NOYAN TAPAN. "The press of the Third Republic of
Armenia is already a fully established structure, which gives an
adequate response to all important and vital issues by forming public
opinion and ensuring people’s right to receive information stipulated
by the RA Constitution," the congratulatory address of RA NA Speaker
Hovik Abrahamian on the occasion of Armenian Press Day marked on
October 16 read. He mentioned that the information sphere is fully
fledged in Armenia: competent journalists work in the sphere.

According to the report provided to Noyan Tapan by the RA NA Public
Relations Department, congratulating all journalists of the country on
the occasion of their professional holiday, H. Abrahamian wished them
creative success and wished them to be objective, conscientious, and
honest when carrying out their professional activity.

Today’s Zaman, Turkey
19 October 2008, Sunday

Turkey needs a Präsenz Schweiz

A recent Turkish media delegation visit to Switzerland organized by
the country’s official public diplomacy agency has revealed Turkey’s
urgent need for a similar agency. Präsenz Schweiz (Presence
Switzerland) invited a group of Turkish journalists for a three-day
visit to Zurich, Bern and Lausanne in order to introduce the Turkish
media to the Swiss democratic system and economy ahead of the first
ever Swiss presidential visit to Turkey.

Swiss President Pascal Couchepin will come to Turkey on the occasion
of the third meeting of the Turkish-Swiss Economic Forum.

The Swiss president met the Turkish media delegation during the
Präsenz Schweiz working trip and assured Turkish readers, through the
journalists, that Switzerland wants to look to the future — not to
the past — by means of Turkish-Swiss relations. Couchepin’s
future-oriented remarks came as a response to the Turkish journalists’
questions about the bad reputation of his country in Turkey, a
reputation nurtured by the fact that Switzerland refuses to name the
Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) a terrorist organization and rejects
extradition requests of Turkey for renowned terrorists residing in
this country. The Swiss president reminded the Turkish delegation that
his country does not label any organization, save the ones declared to
be so by the UN Security Council, as terrorists. "And that includes
only the Nazis and al-Qaeda," he said. Asked about how the Israelis
respond to the fact that Switzerland does not designate organizations
such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad as terrorists, he explained, "Israel
is not always happy with us, and we are not always happy with Israel,"
adding, "But this does not prevent us from loving that country."

A second issue that was voiced in the meeting between the Turkish
delegation and the Swiss president was the infamous anti-racism law in
Switzerland that penalizes denial of the alleged genocide against the
Armenians of Anatolia at the beginning of the 20th century. A citizen
of Turkey has already been convicted of this so-called crime and
another case is still pending. The Swiss president claimed that the
genocide law was a judicial issue and not a political one. Couchepin
said the law was originally passed in reference to the genocide
against the Jews during World War II. "But the judiciary has the
authority to interpret the laws, and judges decided that this law
should apply to the events of 1915, also," he explained. The Swiss
president noted that his country’s official position on the genocide
claim is that history belongs to the historians. "The historians have
to find a common interpretation for these tragic events," Couchepin
said.

Despite the tense question-and-answer session, the Swiss president’s
visit with the Turkish media delegation was able to impress the
Turks. The president was apparently well informed about how to appeal
to the hearts of the Turks, and he accordingly told the Turkish
delegation about his prior visits to various Turkish cities and how
impressed he was by Turkey’s natural environment and
history. Commenting on Switzerland’s position on the Ilısu Dam — a
controversial dam project that will leave one of the oldest human
settlements in the world submerged under water and will, if certain
obstacles are overcome by Turkey, be financed by Germany, Austria and
Switzerland — he said Turkey is a country that does not lack history
and archeology even in one inch of its lands, and thus it has to make
a decision about its priorities. The president thereby both explained
his country’s willingness to support the project and win the hearts of
the Turkish delegation.

The trip featured several other important meetings that aimed to
introduce the Turkish journalists to the seemingly complex and
difficult-to-grasp political system of Switzerland. The journalists
met with former Swiss Parliament Speaker Christine Egerszegi, who gave
a brief lecture on the working procedures of lawmaking in her
country. Ms. Egerszegi commented on a recent public initiative to pass
a law banning the construction of minarets in Switzerland. "If you are
able to collect 110,000 signatures to call for a referendum, you can
suggest any law you want. If you want that all the doors in
Switzerland should be painted blue and if you have enough signatories,
you can do that. That will be put to a referendum," she explained. The
Federal Council and the parliament are not altogether silent in the
face of public-initiated lawmaking processes, but their reports can
only play an advisory role to help the public decide how to vote. The
Federal Council decided that the public initiative was valid because
building minarets is not related to the freedom of conscience, but the
council warned that banning minarets could be a nullification of the
freedom of expression of a faith.

As the visit of the Swiss president coincided with the 80th
anniversary of the opening of the Swiss Embassy in Ankara, the Turkish
delegation also received a lecture by Ambassador Christian Meuwly
about the past 80 years of diplomatic relations between Switzerland
and Turkey. Ambassador Meuwly is head of the Europe and Central Asia
Division of the Political Directorate of the Swiss Foreign Ministry,
and his division covers Turkey. During his presentation Ambassador
Meuwly reminded the Turkish journalists of a statement by Swiss
Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey: "The relations between
Switzerland and Turkey are good and solid and based on a long and rich
tradition." Ambassador Meuwly also read the first article of the
first-ever treaty of friendship between Switzerland and Turkey, signed
in Geneva in September 1925: "There shall be established inviolable
peace and sincere and perpetual friendship between the Swiss
Confederation and the Turkish Republic, as also between the nationals
of the two states." The Turkish-Swiss friendship treaty was second
only to the Turkish-Polish friendship treaty that was signed in
Lausanne during the Lausanne Treaty negotiations in 1924. Asked about
the extradition of PKK terrorists to Turkey, Ambassador Meuwly said
that the extradition process is working fully and that several PKK
terrorists arrested in Switzerland had been extradited to
Turkey. Meuwly didn’t give any numbers or particular names, but
assured the Turkish journalists that the two countries’ ministries of
justice are cooperating fully on the issue and that the Turkish side
is satisfied with the results.

Präsenz Schweiz had cleverly booked the Château d’Ouchy for the
Turkish media delegation to stay in Lausanne. Château d’Ouchy is the
place where the negotiations for the Lausanne Treaty took
place. During their stay in Lausanne the Turkish delegation received
lectures on the new Constitution of the Swiss Confederation and the
country’s supreme court. Professor Luzius Mader told the Turkish
journalists about the process through which the new constitution had
been prepared. The process took some 30 years and the public was fully
enabled to contribute. Mader was himself an influential figure in the
preparation of the final draft of the constitution. He explained how
the committees working on the new constitution adapted certain
principles along the way about the use of an understandable
language. The fact that terms "secular" and "secularism" never appear
in the constitution attracted the attention of the Turkish
delegation. Asked whether the Swiss Constitution has any "untouchable
articles" Professor Mader replied in the negative and added, "You have
to trust the people."

Another principle adapted by the constitution-preparation committees
was that of "adequate normative density." This meant giving the
appropriate amount of place and emphasis to issues in the
constitution. According to the information provided by Mader, the
former Swiss Constitution had five pages of articles on alcoholic
beverages, their preparation, marketing and even consumption. "The new
constitution has only two articles about alcohol, and they say that
the confederation is responsible for making the legal regulations
about alcohol production and that while doing so the confederation
shall in particular take into account the harmful effects of alcohol
consumption," Mader said.

During their stay in Switzerland, the Turkish media delegation visited
Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), Turkish Ambassador to Switzerland Alev
Kılıç, the headquarters of Nestlé and the Paul Scherrer Institute
(PSI), where Swiss researchers are applying the state-of-art
technology of proton therapy for treatment of cancer tissues.

The overall message of the trip organized by Präsenz Schweiz was
summarized in the very personality of the guide for the trip,
Dr. Sibylle Ambühl. Dr. Ambühl is the wife of the state secretary of
the Swiss Confederation and guides foreign delegations to
Switzerland. With her humble manners and punctual programming, Ambühl
managed to give the Turkish delegation the sense of "European-ness"
and the vision of establishing a similar agency for Turkey.

Präsenz Schweiz is the organization that coordinates the Swiss
presence all over the world. It links Swiss organizations from the
fields of business, politics, culture, tourism, sports and youth in a
single network in order to promote the image of Switzerland
worldwide. The organization was first established to break the
negative image created in the 1990s when historical documents proved
that Switzerland had been unable to maintain its neutrality during
World War II and had a certain amount of responsibility in the
atrocities perpetuated against the Jews during the war. A diplomat
from Präsenz Schweiz told Sunday’s Zaman that his organization
supplies the missions of the Swiss Confederation all over the world
with know-how and financing for cultural activities that will promote
Switzerland’s image.

Präsenz Schweiz publishes booklets about Switzerland in several
languages, including Turkish, and runs a Web site at swissworld.org, a
gateway to Switzerland. There is no turkishworld.org or .com yet.

19 October 2008, Sunday
KERÄ°M BALCI ANKARA

IN THE FRENCH SENATE

Hayots Ashkhar Daily
15 Oct 2008
Armenia

In the course of the upcoming months, the French-Armenians will have
to invest tremendous efforts for including the discussions over the
bill envisaging criminal liability for the denial of the Armenian
Genocide into the agenda of the Senate.

Hilda Choboyan, Head of the ARFD "Hay Dat" Office in Europe, said
that after the elections to the Senate, the upper house of the French
Parliament has a new Speaker, and it is required to carry out an
active lobbying for introducing the demands of the French-Armenians
to the new leader.

Let’s note that on October 12, 2006 the French Parliament passed a bill
envisaging punishment for the denial of the Armenian Genocide. The
punishment includes imprisonment for the term of 1 year or fine in
the amount of up to 45 thousand Euros. The Bill has been submitted
to the Senate for approval.

NEW ARMENIAN-GEORGIAN ROAD TO BOOST REGIONAL ECONOMIC COOPERATION

Hayots Ashkharh
October 2, 2008 Thursday
Armenia

The future road that will connect Armenia to Georgia’s region of
Ajaria via the Armenian-populated Georgian region of Javakheti will
offer new economic benefits for Armenia and will give Georgia access
to the Black Sea, alternative to the one that comes through the road
adjacent to the Georgian-South-Ossetian border.

In the report entitled "What will the Gyumri-Akhalkalaki-Batumi road
give?", Vardan Grigoryan writes that the Russian-Georgian war proved
that the Gori and Khashuri sections of the road leading to the west of
Georgia and Ajaria and the railroad that runs along those areas are
not reliable enough because they are too close to the South Ossetian
border. The author of the report says that a contemporary road leading
from Javakheti to Ajaria could largely neutralize possible risks
faced by Armenia and become the second communication route passing
through Georgia.

Grigoryan says that plans to build a railroad in the same direction
existed in the Soviet time, but the Georgian government rejected
them, and former Georgian President Zviad Gamsakhurdia also rejected
Armenia’s suggestions to build a similar road, because Ajaria did
not obey the Georgian government at that time. Grigoryan believes
that due to the changed situation in the region – after loosing South
Ossetia – Georgia now needs this road because the current road that
connects its capital Tbilisi to the Black Sea ports passes along the
Georgian-Ossetian border.

The new road will allow speedy transportation of Armenian loads
to the port of Batumi, Grigoryan writes. It will pass through
Samtskhe-Javakheti region and is called to improve the region’s
economic situation and balance "unilateral Turkish penetrations" into
Javakheti, the author believes. Grigoryan says that instead of being a
joint of Turkish-Georgian interests, Ajaria will turn into an important
link in economic cooperation of the three countries in a while.

IRAQ: CHRISTIAN BUSINESSMAN KILLED IN MOSUL
By Kim Gamel

St. Louis Post-Dispatch
The Associated Press
10/14/2008
United States

BAGHDAD — The music store owner had too many mouths to feed to
consider joining other Iraqi Christians fleeing from violence in
Mosul. The decision cost him his life as he became at least the 10th
Christian slaughtered by suspected Sunni extremists in the northern
city so far this month.

Gunmen stormed into Farques Batool’s store late Sunday in an eastern
part of the city, killing him and wounding his teenage nephew,
according to police and a neighbor.

Batool, an Armenian Christian, was supporting his mother, his wife,
a daughter, as well as the family of his dead brother, according to
his neighbor.

"He was a very kind man who refused to leave Mosul and insisted on
staying to take care of his family," Raid Bahnam said. The family fled
the city after his death, leaving his wounded nephew in the hospital.

They joined thousands of other Christians who have abandoned their
homes in Mosul to seek refuge in churches and with relatives in
neighboring villages or in relatively safe Kurdish-controlled areas
nearby.

Cars and trucks loaded with suitcases, mattresses and passengers
cradling baskets stuffed with clothing lined up Monday at a checkpoint
about 20 miles east of the city on their way to safety.

Nobody has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but local leaders
have blamed al-Qaida in Iraq, which maintains influence in the region
despite an ongoing U.S.-Iraqi military operation launched in May.

Islamic extremists have frequently targeted Christians and other
religious minorities since the 2003 U.S. invasion, forcing tens of
thousands to flee Iraq — although attacks slowed with a nationwide
decline in violence.

The reason for the latest surge in attacks was unclear. But it
coincides with strong lobbying by Christian leaders for Iraq’s
parliament to restore a quota system to give religious minorities
seats on provincial councils that will be chosen by voters before
the end of January.

U.N. special representative Staffan de Mistura strongly condemned
"the spike in violence that has targeted the Christian communities
in recent days" and warned the attacks were seeking to "fuel tensions
and exacerbate instability at a critical time."

Chaldean Archbishop Louis Sako of the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk
denounced "a campaign of liquidation and violence, with political
objectives."