Author: Jane Topchian

GLENDALE—This month marks the 3rd anniversary of the opening of the Shirvanian Youth Center in Gyumri, Armenia, which was spearheaded by Armenian Cultural Foundations “We are Gyumri” Committee. The SYC allows for youth of all ages to join together for cultural, educational, and social gatherings, as well as lessons.

On July 11, the SYC held a successful event celebrating and marking its third anniversary. SYC’s Manager/Program Coordinator, Gohar Karapetyan, welcomed guests, reported on the Center’s activities, highlighted accomplishments, and provided an update on the “We Are Gyumri” Mina Shirvanian Scholarship Fund. The program included a dance performance, updates by volunteers and scholarship recipients regarding the Center‘s projects, and followed with a reception.

Yerkir Media’s coverage of the event is available below:

“We are continuing to collaborate with local, national, and international organizations and non-profits to ensure we develop programs and offer services that enhance and enrich the lives of youth in Gyumri. We strive to stay current with our program offerings and classes to maximize the impact we have on each child. One such program is Engineer Armenia,” Karapetyan noted.

Yerkir Media’s interview with Gohar Karapetyan is available below:

Engineer Armenia is a multipurpose program conducted by an interdisciplinary team of volunteers led by Karina Khadarian, a chemical engineering graduate from the University of California, Irvine. From July 8 to 10, 100 students from the Shirak province participated in an engineering day camp, which took place at Shirvanian Youth Center. The team conducted educational sessions about the fundamentals of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. They also ran games and activities that incorporated these fundamentals, which were tailored to each age group. “The main goal of our day camp is to inspire and encourage the youth—the next generation of leaders—to pursue such career paths within Armenia, as well as to provide them with the basic fundamentals and tools,” stated Karapetyan.

Follow “We Are Gyumri” on Facebook and Instagram, and the Shirvanian Youth Center Facebook.

The mission of the “We Are Gyumri” is to create a positive and lasting impact on youth in Gyumri, Armenia (Shirak Region). The campaign restructured and renovated the Shirvanian Youth Center in Gyumri, Armenia; a year-round functional program at the center teaches youth in Gyumri everyday skills, provides them with the essentials they need for a brighter future, and serves as a bridge between youth in Gyumri and their peers in the Diaspora. The “We Are Gyumri” Mina Shirvanian Scholarship Fund sponsors residents of the Shirak Region to pursue their undergraduate education in their native region.

A Turkish court on Wednesday handed prison sentences to nine suspects in relation to the 2007 assassination of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, reported the Istanbul-based Agos newspaper.

Dink’s assassination trial is ongoing, while the verdict for nine suspects was brought forward as they were subject to statute of limitations.

Garo Paylan, an Armenian member of the Turkish parliament representing the People’s Democratic Party (HDP), took to Twitter to announce the sentencing and declare that Dink’s murder case is far from closed, until the real perpetrators are put behind bars.

Since Dink’s assassination, it has been speculated that Turkey’s infamous deep state or the Turkish government itself had a role in ordering the killing, because of the journalist’s outspoken position on advancing democracy domestically, as well as condemning the Armenian Genocide.

“Those convicted in Hrant Dink’s case are the perpetrators of the murder. As friends of Hrant we have been saying for 12 years, ‘Let those who ordered the killing be punished.’ But they are being defended for 12 years. Dink’s murder case will not close unless we want it,” Paylan said in a Twitter post.

Erhan Tuncel, a former informant and the suspected mastermind of the Dink murder, was sentenced to 99 years and six months in prison for taking part in Dink’s assassination, being a member of an armed group, and his part in a bomb blast at a restaurant in the Black Sea coastal province of Trabzon. Tuncel was arrested at court.

Another defendant, Yasin Hayal, who previously received a life sentence for his part in the assassination, was sentenced to seven years and six months in prison over forming and leading an armed group.

The court sentenced assassin Ogün Samast, a native of Trabzon who was 16-years-old at the time of the assassination, was sentenced to two years and six months in prison for membership to an armed group. Samast is serving a 22 years and 10-month sentence for Dink’s murder.

Four other suspects were sentenced to less than two-years in prison for their role in the murder, while two defendants, including Hayal’s brother Osman Hayal, were acquitted.