Author: Madatian Greg

AZERBAIJAN BLOCKS WESTERN UNION, MONEYGRAM TRANSFERS

MarketWatch
Aug 1 2008

BAKU, Azerbaijan (AFP) — Azerbaijan has suspended the activities of
money transfer companies Western Union Co. because they operate in
the breakaway region of Nagorno Karabakh, the central bank said Friday.

"Transfers and reception of money under these systems have been
completely suspended in all banks of Azerbaijan," the statement said.

"This is in connection with the possibility of receiving transfers
through Western Union and MoneyGram on the territory of Nagorno
Karabakh."

Azerbaijan strongly opposes companies operating in Nagorno Karabakh.

Backed by Armenia, ethnic Armenian forces took control of Nagorno
Karabakh during a war in the early 1990s that killed thousands and
forced nearly a million people on both sides to flee their homes.

A ceasefire was signed between the two former Soviet republics,
Armenia and Azerbaijan, in 1994 but the dispute remains unresolved
after more than a decade of negotiations.

SUPERSTITION SPURS 13TH DELAY OF POLICY STATEMENT
By Hussein Abdallah

Daily Star
Aug 1 2008
Lebanon

BEIRUT: Information Minister Tarek Mitri said on Thursday that the
ministerial committee in charge of drafting a policy statement for
the new government has almost reached an agreement on the final draft
of such statement.

Mitri told reporters at the Grand Serail after the 13th meeting of the
committee that a final meeting will be held at 6 p.m. on Friday after
which the government will be ready to sit for a vote of confidence in
Parliament. "Some parties have their reservations about terminology
issues in some parts of the ministerial statement, but we are positive
that all obstacles will be overcome by Friday," Mitri said.

"Had I not been sure about that I would not have said that Friday’s
meeting will be the committee’s last meeting," the minister added.

Asked why such obstacles have not been dealt with by the committee on
Thursday, Mitri said that reaching an agreement in the 13th meeting
was bad omen. "We did not want to have everything done in the 13th
meeting since many people are pessimistic about the number 13."

Meanwhile, well-informed sources told The Daily Star on Thursday that
the committee had agreed on the phrases that will be used regarding
the issue of "the resistance."

The sources said that the ministerial statement will likely emphasize
on the resistance’s historical role, sacrifices, and its achievements,
the last of which was liberating all Lebanese prisoners in Israeli
jails.

The sources added that the statement will also recognize the right
of the Lebanese people to resist Israeli occupation, while stressing
the role of the Lebanese state in protecting Lebanon’s sovereignty
and independence and providing security for all Lebanese citizens.

The committee met at the Grand Serail Thursday evening shortly after
a brief meeting between Labor Minister Mohammad Fneish (Hizbullah)
and Prime Minister Fouad Siniora.

Fneish left the government headquarters after the meeting with Siniora
and joined the committee’s meeting later after holding consultations
with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri and Hizbullah’s leadership.

Upon his return to the Grand Serail, Fneish told reporters that
the committee was very close to reaching an agreement over the new
ministerial statement.

Earlier on Thursday, a Hizbullah delegation, made up of Fneish and
Hizbullah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah’s political aide Hussein
Khalil, held two separate meetings with Siniora and Berri as part of
efforts to facilitate an agreement over the new ministerial statement.

Meanwhile, Minister of State Youssef Taqla, also a member of the
ministerial committee, said after meeting Lebanese Forces leader
Samir Geagea that the committee was likely to finish with drafting
the new ministerial statement on Thursday.

Geagea also received at his residence in Maarab President Michel
Sleiman’s political adviser Nazem Khoury, who told reporters after
the meeting that the issue of Hizbullah’s possession of arms would
be among the major issue that will be dealt with in the upcoming
national dialogue to be organized by the president.

"The defense strategy will be a main item on the agenda," he said

Khoury noted that the dialogue is not related to President Michel
Sleiman’s upcoming visit to Damascus and said that preparations for
the dialogue are under way.

Sleiman is expected to visit Damascus to discuss bilateral ties between
Lebanon and Syria after Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem delivered
an invitation for the Lebanese president from his Syrian counterpart
Bashar Assad.

Khoury also visited the Armenian Tashnak Party on Thursday and
discussed with MP Hagop Pakradounian the prospects of the upcoming
national dialogue.

On Wednesday, the ministerial committee met for the twelfth time but
failed to reach agreement, with Mitri saying the discussions revolved
around the phrasing of the document.

"Hopefully I will read a statement to you that is as clear as
sunshine," Mitri said, adding that the committee would meet again
on Thursday.

The government will officially take office only after a parliamentary
vote of confidence on the policy statement.

The cabinet, in which the opposition has the right of veto, was formed
on July 11 after weeks of bickering, despite a May power-sharing
agreement struck in Qatar that ended a protracted political dispute.

"The socio-economic issues have been settled, the stumbling block is
the issue of Hizbullah’s weapons," said a member of the ministerial
committee drafting the statement.

The Hizbullah-led opposition insists on including a phrase
acknowledging the "right to resist" Israel, while the parliamentary
majority insists on wording that indicates that only the state can
make decisions of war and peace.

"No single party has a monopoly on the right [to resist], or imposing
its own methods and choices without taking into account the principle
of preserving the state," Siniora said in a statement on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Hussein Khalil said after meeting Free Patriotic Movement
leader MP Michel Aoun on Thursday that there will be no ministerial
statement without "the resistance." "There is no Lebanon without the
resistance … and to be short I will tell you that there will be no
ministerial statement without the resistance," he told reporters.

The controversy over Hizbullah’s weapons intensified after its
fighters captured two Israeli soldiers in a cross-border raid in
July 2006 and the Jewish state responded to the border incident by
launching a devastating 34-day war on Lebanon.

The issue boiled to the surface again when Hizbullah led an armed
takeover of large swathes of predominantly Sunni west Beirut in
fierce fighting in May that left at least 65 people dead. – additional
reporting by Nafez Qawas and AFP

KOYA’S ANCIENT CITADEL
By Rawaz Tahir

Kurdish Globe
sp?id=2FD594F476DE6EA58A06E2D7133821D1
July 30 2008
Iraq

The citadel of Koya,an important historical and archaeological site.

The citadel of Koya, one of the most important historical and
archaeological sites in Kurdistan, is located in eastern Koya town. Its
sheer size, geographical position, and its prime location on the hill
of Kakon showcase the citadel’s magnificent beauty.

There is no certifiable research documenting the citadel’s exact
history, only speculation. Kurdish intellectuals and historians hold
various opinions on its historical background; most say it was built
during the period of Mithat Pasha in the years 1869-72; others say
Soran Emirate constructed it. But the most accurate research says that
Mir Mihamad Bagi Romy built the citadel in the 15th century when the
ottomans were in power.

The citadel was built primarily for military purposes and to serve
as an important business center. "When the Iraqi government was
established in 1918, the English army used it [the citadel] as a
cavalry center," said Kurdish intellectual/poet Jala Jobar. Over
time it was used as a prison, and during the Armenian genocide in
1915 many Armenians fled to the citadel for safety. Famous Kurdish
poet Kakury was born there.

The citadel is constructed of four long walls made of big marble
stones carved from Bawaji Mountain. Each wall is approximately 100
meters long, 90 meters wide, and 85-90 centimeters thick; 12 concrete
grips steady the front wall of the citadel. Four huge posts dotted
with small holes, which were used to monitor the trading caravans
arriving from Asia, bind the walls together. "They installed artillery
throughout the posts; it was used as a place to shoot guns and arrows,"
said Jamal Fathula, a sociologist at Koya University.

Just inside the citadel is an extensive square with an ancient pool;
on the left hand of the square is the grave of a pious man, Bapir Faqi
Ahmed. The inside front is divided into several rooms that were used
as prisons during the Othman Empire, with one entire room dedicated
to exhibiting the citadel’s valuable treasures. A huge section of the
citadel was reconstructed in 2001, yet its unique outside appearance
reflects the same view as its original structure.

GAS CONSUMPTION GROWS IN ARMENIA 6.2 PERCENT IN FIRST SIX MONTHS, 2008

ARKA
July 29, 2008

YEREVAN, July 29. /ARKA/. The volume of consumed natural gas in
Armenia increased by 6.2 percent in the first six months 2008 and
reached 1.9bln cubic meters.

The press service of ArmRosgasprom said 1.102bln cubic meters of
gas was delivered to Armenia in January-June 2008 which exceeds the
showing of 2007 by 2.8 percent.

The energy sector consumed 215mln cubic meters, the population
consumed 360mln and industry consumed 186mln cubic meters in the
reported period.

The volume of gas consumption by various consumers increased by 22.6%
and totalled 99mln cubic meters

RESISTANCE TO POSSIBLE AGGRESSION DRILLED DURING EXERCISE STAGE IN ARMENIA

Interfax News Agency
July 28 2008
Russia

The results of stage one of command post exercises of Collective
Security Treaty Organization (CSTO)

Frontier-2008 in Armenia have been summed up in Yerevan, Interfax-AVN
was told at the CSTO secretariat on Monday.

"Summing up stage one Armenian Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian noted
that the exercises became a reason for the leadership of all the
country’s agencies to once again focus on issues that will face the
state in the event of possible aggression helping to eradicate all
the existing shortcomings with the purpose of improving the country’s
defense in conditions of the current military-political situation,"
a spokesman for the secretariat said.

He said Ohanian praised the interaction of different agencies during
the exercise. He said that a working study group held meetings and
discussions with nine agencies to define and check the efforts aimed
at rebuffing the possible aggression of an adversary.

The spokesman said Moscow would host stage two of the exercises on
July 30-31.

THIS YEAR ANCA EASTERN REGION WILL PRESENT THE FREEDOM AWARD TO SAMANTHA POWER

NOYAN TAPAN

JU LY 25

The Armenian National Committee of America, Eastern Region (ANCA-ER),
announced the honorees for its Second Annual Banquet and Awards
Program, to take place on September 13, 2008 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel
in New York City. As announced previously, the ANCA-ER will present the
ANCA Freedom Award to Harvard University professor and human rights
activist Dr. Samantha Power. A leading voice on genocide awareness,
Power won the Pulitzer Prize for her book A Problem From Hell: America
and the Age of Genocide. She teaches at the Carr Center for Human
Rights Policy at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and
was a senior adviser to U.S. Democratic Party presidential candidate
Barack Obama.

ALI BABACAN: WE TAKE PROBLEMS BETWEEN ARMENIA AND AZERBAIJAN INTO CONSIDERATION

Azeri Press Agency
July 24 2008
Azerbaijan

New-York. "After elections in Armenia, our President and Prime Minister
have sent a letter of congratulation.

After establishment of the Government, I have sent a letter to
my counterpart. These aim to make a dialogue with new Armenian
Government. Our wishes and foreign policy base on peace relations with
our neighbor countries," Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan told
journalists in New-York, APA reports quoting Anadolu agency. Babacan,
who had meetings in UN Headquarters to collect supports for Turkey’s
UN Security Council membership in October, stressed that they wanted
to establish normal neighborhood relations with Armenia. He added
that Turkey took one-sided steps in this direction.

"Thousands people came from Armenia to work in Turkey. Trade is
conducted via Georgia and Iran and it amounts $500 mln last year. We
allowed flights from Turkey. We have taken lop-sided steps. We expect
positive steps from opposite side as well. We will also take problems
between Azerbaijan and Armenia into account," he said. Babacan added
that they believed in solution to problems via dialogue and stressed
an importance of establishing of joint historical commission on
1915 developments.

AZERBAIJAN REJECTS ARMENIA’S ACCUSATIONS ABOUT VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN LAW: FOREIGN MINISTRY

Trend News Agency
July 25 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan rejects Armenia’s accusations about violation of
international humanitarian law.

"Armenia, which occupied Azerbaijani territory, tries through
its statements and accusations about violation by Azerbaijan
of international humanitarian law to place on Azerbaijan the
responsibility for all its own illegal and contradicting to
international law actions," Spokesman for Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry
Khazar Ibrahim said to Trend News on 25 July.

On 24 July, the head of working group of Armenia’s State Committee
on captives, hostages and missing people Armen Kaprielyan said
Azerbaijan violates international humanitarian law, still keeping
the four Armenians who were taken captives in April, and that Armenia
would draw the attention of international community to the issue.

Four Armenian servicemen were detained in the Nakhchivan Autonomous
Republic (NAR) of Azerbaijan in April 2008.

Azerbaijan’s Defence Ministry stated the servicemen are spetsnaz
(special forces) members preparing to commit sabotage in Azerbaijan.

The conflict between the two countries of the South Caucasus began
in 1988 due to Armenian territorial claims against Azerbaijan. Since
1992, Armenian Armed Forces have occupied 20% of Azerbaijan including
the Nagorno-Karabakh region and its seven surrounding districts. In
1994, Azerbaijan and Armenia signed a ceasefire agreement at which
time the active hostilities ended. The Co-Chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group (Russia, France, and the US) are currently holding peaceful
negotiations.

PARLIAMENT COMMITTEE CONFIRMS NEGLECT IN DINK MURDER

armradio.am
24.07.2008 16:00

A parliamentary subcommittee investigating the murder of
Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink confirmed that there was
negligence and a lack of coordination by both the gendarmerie and
police, in a report released yesterday, the Turkish Daily News
reported.

"Hrant Dink was killed due to negligence of authorities at every
level in introducing measures to prevent the threat," said the
committee’s long-awaited report, which was presented yesterday in a
press conference at parliament. Thus, Article 17 of the Constitution
regulating "right to life" and Article 2 of the European Convention
on Human Rights were violated due to negligence, the report concluded.

The chairman of the subcommittee, Mehmet Ocaktan, Justice and
Development Party, or AKP, Istanbul deputy, said the committee only
investigates if there is some wrongdoing in the administrative process,
but they are not responsible for solving the murder.

Ocaktan declined to respond to questions regarding a recent decision
by an Istanbul court disallowing any investigation of the police
officers, including Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah. "Our report does
not contain allegations against persons. The judicial process is
going on. At this stage, we do not have the right to ask questions
on who was accused of what," Ocaktan argued.

The subcommittee pointed to controversie s related to Dink’s
assassination and argued that intelligence received prior to the
murder was not taken into consideration despite the seriousness of the
threats. Trabzon police were accused of sending a document dated Feb.

17, 2006 that included intelligence on possible effective action
against the Armenian community and a violent threat against Dink’s
life.

Noting that there was still an ongoing investigation into the case, the
sub-committee said it is too early to reach a conclusion about whether
an effective official investigation has been carried out or not.

The 180-page report proposed a list of measures to counter
possible future threats in situations similar to Dink’s. "Degree of
confidentiality and urgency of the documents must be clearly noted. All
intelligence regardless of the content should be reported and
inserted to the central data bank. A system to record all supportive
intelligence sources needs to be established," the report noted.

The report also underlined that civilian authorities must be notified
of all intelligence and any activity by security forces in their
jurisdiction.

Increasing the number of police officers in Istanbul and granting
special duty benefits to junior office staff were also among the
recommendations.

AZERBAIJAN NOT CONCERNED ABOUT UNOFFICIAL TALKS BETWEEN TURKEY AND ARMENIA: FOREIGN MINISTRY

Trend News Agency
July 21 2008
Azerbaijan

Azerbaijan is not concerned about the unofficial talks between Turkey
and Armenia on opening of borders.

"The important for us is the official position of Turkey," Khazar
Ibrahim, spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan said to
media on 21 July.

The representatives of Turkey and Armenia held unofficial talks on
18 July, Hurriyet newspaper reported.

"As Foreign Minister of Turkey Ali Babajan stated that the position
of Turkey on opening borders is unchanged, we hope that the measures
adopted by Turkey will meet this policy," Ibrahim said.

The border between Turkey and Armenia has been closed for 15 years
because of the unsolved so-called ‘Armenian genocide’ it the Ottoman
Empire during the World War I. The official Ankara has stated more
than once that it will not open borders with Armenia unless Yerevan
gives up its ‘Armenian genocide’ claims and it frees occupied lands
of Azerbaijan.

20% of lands of Azerbaijan including Nagorno-Karabakh and 7 surrounding
regions have been occupied by the Armenian troops.