Author: Nahapetian Zhanna

103 ARMENIANS MOVED FROM LEBANON TO ARMENIA

YEREVAN, JULY 18, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. During the last day
103 ethnic Armenians were moved from Lebanon to the city of Aleppo,
Syria and then to Armenia by plane. As Vladimir Karapetian, acting
spokesperson of Foreign Ministry of Armenia informed the Radio Liberty,
some of these people are citizens of Armenia but their majority are
citizens of other countries, mainly of Lebanon.

He mentioned that the Armenian-populated regions of Lebanon are far
from the territories that are bombed by Israel and there is no great
alarm. At the same time, the spoksman confirmed that the Armenians
worried about the security of their families apply to the Embassy
of Armenia.

Vladimir Karapetian expressed hope that everything will calm down soon.

At the same time Agence France Press informes that a dancing group
of Australian Armenian children which was returning to Australia
from Armenia through Lebanon and remained in Beyrouth because of the
bombing of the Beyrouth airport, has already moved to Syria.

ARMENIAN REPORTERS CONCERNED WITH INTENSIFYING PRESSURE UPON THEM

Yerevan, July 18. ArmInfo. Armenian reporters concerned with
intensifying pressure upon them in connection with the coming
parliamentary elections.

The editors of a number of Armenian newspapers signed a statement,
which says that the pressure is exrted by persons who are interested
(or not interested) in publishing certain information about them.
Certain persons threatened reporters Edik Bagdasarian (because of
his article about ‘Thriving Armenia’ party) and Gagik Shamshian.

Hundreds more Australians to evacuate Lebanon

ABC Online, Australia
July 19 2006

AM – Wednesday, 19 July , 2006 08:00:00
Reporter: Karen Barlow

TONY EASTLEY: The evacuation of foreign nationals out of strife-torn
Lebanon is in full swing, but there are grave fears for Australians
trapped in the south of the country.

Two bus convoys loaded with Australians have now successfully escaped
by road, and another 400 Australians are expected to leave Beirut
today on chartered ferries.

American, French and Canadian nationals are among the thousands of
others all leaving in one of the biggest seaborne evacuation operations
since World War II.

Karen Barlow reports.

KAREN BARLOW: George Atamian is now in the Jordanian capital Amman
after escaping Lebanon on a bus with the Sydney Armenian Dance Troupe.

GEORGE ATAMIAN: It honestly feels pretty good. It feels good in a way
that you know we’re free and we’re safer out here, but at the same
time, I sort of feel pretty bad, ’cause I’ve got a lot of friends
there that I’ve sort of met and some family up there as well and yeah,
I just feel really bad for them, what they have to go through.

KAREN BARLOW: Just over a week ago, the Melburnian was in Germany
enjoying the World Cup finals.

He decided on a whim to travel to Lebanon to visit family and friends;
then the bombardment began.

GEORGE ATAMIAN: That was some scary moments. We actually felt, yeah,
that they were pretty close.

KAREN BARLOW: George Atamian knew members of the Dance Troupe and
decided to stay with them when they bunkered down in their Beirut
hotel.

GEORGE ATAMIAN: The mood around the hotel wasn’t too bad. We sort of
had some hope that the Government would sort of do something and help
us out there and yeah, so I guess fortunate enough to be out now.

GEORGE ATAMIAN: Thousands of other Australians are needing help to
get out of the conflict zone.

More than 7,000 citizens are now registered with the Australia embassy
in Beirut.

The Foreign Affairs Minister, Alexander Downer, says the Government
is working as hard as it can.

ALEXANDER DOWNER: Look, we one way or another will, I think, be able to
get all the people who want to get out fairly soon, with an exception,
and that is the people in the south who I’m especially worried about.

KAREN BARLOW: A chartered ferry will today arrive off Beirut to take
about 300 Australians to Turkey, and a further 100 Australians will
travel on a Canadian chartered ship.

Priority will be given to families with children, the elderly and
the sick.

Mr Downer says the Government is negotiating with Israel to ensure
a safe passage for exiting foreign nationals.

ALEXANDER DOWNER: We have a good relationship with Israel and they,
I understand, are concerned. Of course they’ve got to do what they
have to do in relation to Hezbollah, and they’re going to continue
to wage war against Hezbollah.

KAREN BARLOW: Alexander Downer says the Government is trying to
charter another ship for Friday and a bigger one for Saturday.

TONY EASTLEY: Karen Barlow.

PRESS RELEASE

July 17, 2006
Embassy of the Republic of Armenia
2225 R Street, NW, Washington, DC, 20008
Tel: 202-319-1976, x. 348; Fax: 202-319-2982
Email: [email protected]
Web:

Armenia’s Independence Day to Be Celebrated in Washington With a
Special Event

The fifteenth anniversary of Armenia’s independence will be celebrated
later this year. This important milestone will be celebrated not
only in Armenia but also by the Armenian Embassies in foreign
countries. The main celebration on September 21 will coincide with
the Armenia-Diaspora Conference in Yerevan, which will draw large
attendance from the Armenian Diaspora.

On October 20, 2006, a special event, Celebrating Fifteen Years of
Independence, will be hosted in Washington, D.C. by Ambassador Tatoul
Markarian. Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian will be the keynote
speaker at this special celebration. The details and final program
of the event will be provided by the Embassy of Armenia.

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]

18 July 2006

SYDNEY-BASED DANCE GROUP HEADING HOME FROM LEBANON

Sydney, Australia – The Hamazkaine Sevan Dance Group and entourage
of parents and minders are now making their safe passage home from
Lebanon.

After spending anxious days and moments in what is now become war torn
Beirut yet again, the 80 plus group was bussed in a covert operation
through Syria and are at this very moment in Amman, Jordan from where
they will fly home to Sydney.

Throughout this ordeal, the office of the Primate of the Armenian
Church and Welfare Centre has been a contact point for media and
government departments in collaboration with Sydney’s Armenian
community leaders and organisations.

On Saturday, 15 July Archbishop Aghan Baliozian, Primate of the Diocese
of the Armenian Church of Australia and New Zealand met with community
leaders and families of the stranded group members at the Panoyan
Cultural Centre in Bonnyrigg at a press conference. Loved ones were
assured the Armenian Community of Sydney had banded together and in
collaboration with the Australian Government were exhausting every
avenue to mobilise the safe passage of the group.

There has been overwhelming local and community media coverage of the
events as they have unfolded. Now the local Armenian Community eagerly
awaits the safe arrival of the group in Sydney which is anticipated
in the next few days.

The Hamazkaine Sevan Dance Group has been touring Armenia, Syria and
Lebanon since mid-June performing at an international dance festival
in Armenia and a series of concerts in the motherland as well as in
Beirut and Aleppo. It was on the morning of their due departure from
Beirut when the airport bomb strike happened.

Yesterday, contact was established with the group by Archbishop
Baliozian who passed on the blessings and prayers of His Holiness
Karekin II Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians.

There are still thousands of Australians stranded in Beirut and the
foremost evacuation of the Armenian dance troupe which consists mainly
of teenage youth remains nothing short of a miracle for the anxious
parents and families in Sydney. The Armenian Community is forever
grateful to the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Australian Embassy
in Lebanon and the Australian Government for the tireless efforts to
ensure the safe passage home of our children.

We thank our Almighty Father for His Divine intervention. We trust
in Him to bring the group safely home to reunite with their families
very soon. Our prayers are now for the thousands still stranded in
Beirut that they too will be led to the safe haven of Australia.

AZG Armenian Daily #132, 15/07/2006

Statement

"FOR DEFENCE OF NAGORNO KARABAKH " NGO CRITICIZES
ACTIVITIES OF OSCE MG AND "WEAKNESS" OF ARMENIAN
DIPLOMATS

"For Defense of Nagorno Karabakh" NGO expressed its
disagreement with the approaches of the OSCE Minsk
group co-chairs in the settlement of the Nagorno
Karabakh conflict. The press release of the NGO stated
this.

The organization also condemned "the weakness" of the
Armenian diplomatic structures in the settlement of
Nagorno Karabakh conflict and demands to include NKR
in the negotiations as a full fledged participant. The
members of NGO also reminded RA President Robert
Kocharian that he has no plenipotentiaries to sign any
document on the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh
conflict ®¯ behalf of Armenia or NKR. The members of
the organization emphasized that they will struggle
for the settlement of the conflict till the end in
accordance with the people’s right for
self-determination. It is said in the NGO’s statement
that the settlement elements published by the OSCE MG
co-chairs emphasize their efforts to politicize the
issue and ignore the principles of the international
law, the historical and the regional facts.

By Sousana Margarian

–Boundary_(ID_BWbEOujZvTrQep2NQ6vYpg)- –

OSCE MG Co-Chairs to Hold Consultations in Paris in August

PanARMENIAN.Net
15.07.2006 14:35 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ Co-Chairs of the OSCE MG for settlement of the
Nagorno Karabakh conflict intend to hold next consultations in Paris,
said Azeri FM Elmar Mammadyarov. In his words, in Turkey he will meet
with OSCE MG US Co-Chair Matthew Bryza, who reported his intention
to visit Yerevan and Baku in late July – early August.

During Bryza’s visit situation will be analyzed and opportunity of
progress in the talks will be considered. "The American diplomat has
a number of proposals. However, the question of the next meeting at
the level of FMs of Armenia and Azerbaijan is still open. It will
be considered during Bryza’s regional visit," Mammadyarov said,
reports Trend.

ARMENIAN BOXERS TO PARTICIPATE IN BOXING CHAMPIONSHIP IN EUROPE IN
PLOVDIV (BULGARIA)

Yerevan, July 14. ArmInfo. Armenian boxers will participate in Boxing
Championship in Europe starting in Plovdiv, Bulgaria.

The Armenian team comprises 8 boxers from Yerevan, Vanadzor, Gyumri and
Etchmiadzin, as well as 3 trainers and a doctor. About 500 sportsmen
from 37 countries participate in the Champtionship. –

Azeri Justice Ministry Going to Press for Safarov’s Extradition

PanARMENIAN.Net
12.07.2006 17:55 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Azeri Justice Ministry intends to inquire the
Hungarian Ministry of Justice about the possibility of extradition of
Azeri lieutenant Ramil Safarov, who was sentenced to life imprisonment
for the murder of Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan. According to
head of the department of international legal cooperation at the
Azeri Justice Ministry Zaver Gafarov, the process will start after
the consideration of the appeal on Safarov’s verdict. In Gafarov’s
words, the appeal will be issued within the frames of the European
Convention of 1981 "On legal assistance between the CoE member states"
and will be considered this fall, reported Day.az.

To remind, the Budapest Court sentenced Azeri officer Ramil Safarov to
life imprisonment for the murder of Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan
on February 19, 2004. Both officers were taking an English course
within the Partnership for Peace NATO program in the Hungarian capital.

TREND, Azerbaijan
July 12 2006

If Turkey accepts the EU conditions, it will have to deny its history
and national spirit – Azeri political scientist

Source: Trend
Author: J. Shavediyev

12.07.2006

Even if Turkey accepts the EU conditions, it will not join this
organization, said MP and political scientist Aydin Mirzadzadeh,
member of Poliutical Council with New Azerbaijan Party.

Representatives of main political groups within European parliament
said in case Turkey recognizes so-called Armenian genocide and opens
its border with Armenia, the country ill be le join the EU. Among these
conditions is recognition of Cyprus and resolution of Kurd problem.

MP said Armenian genocide recognition may not e the condition of
affiliation. This shall be the matter of discussion among historians
only. "The same might be said of the border opening. This is an
internal affair of the state", Mirzazadeh said.

Mirzazadeh said he doubts Turkey would accept such conditions.

"Accepting such conditions implies Turkey denying its history and
national spirit. Turkey will have to beg its pardons to Armenians. To
make mattes worse, if Turkey opens its border with Armenia, Azerbaijan
will remain face-to-face with Nagorno-Karabakh and thus Ankara will
have to break up with Baku, which will consequently harm Turkey on
South Caucasus", said the scientist, adding Turkish government will
never agreed to that.