President Serzh Sargsyan participated today in the events dedicated to the 25th anniversary of proclamation of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic.
Presidents of Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh Serzh Sargsyan and Bako Sahakyan, other officials and guests marched from the Renaissance Square to the Stepanakert Memorial, laid flowers and paid tribute to the memory of those who sacrificed their lives for the independence of Artsakh.
The festive events in Artsakh continue.
A German government spokesman denied claims made in a news report that Berlin was going to tone down a resolution calling the murder of Armenians a genocide. Leaders pointed out, however, that it is not legally binding, reports.
The German news magazine “Der Spiegel” had reported on Friday that Berlin planned a gesture to appease Turkish government anger over the Bundestag’s Armenia resolution. That report, however, was denied by German government spokesman Steffen Seibert.
“There can be no talk of the German government distancing itself from the Armenia resolution,” Steffen Seibert told reporters at the regular news conference.
The report in “Der Spiegel” said Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government hoped to resolve a dispute that has seen German parliamentarians barred from visiting Bundeswehr troops stationed at the Incirlik airbase in eastern Turkey.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel told the parliamentary leader of her conservative party that she is not distancing herself from a Bundestag resolution on the 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman forces that has strained ties with Turkey, according to sources briefed on the matter, Reuters reports.
Volker Kauder, the head of the Christian Democrats in parliament, told a meeting of party members that he had spoken with Merkel and she emphasized her position, said the sources, who attended the meeting.
Kauder said Merkel also noted that she had voted to support the resolution during a party meeting before the vote, although she was not present when the vote took place in June. Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel and Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier were also not present, the sources said.
The German news magazine “Der Spiegel” reported earlier today that recognizing the historic Ottoman slaughter of Armenians as genocide to appease Turkish government anger.
Bastian Schweinsteiger has been named in Manchester United’s Premier League squad for this season, the reports.
The 31-year-old has been deemed surplus to requirements under new manager Jose Mourinho and was free to leave Old Trafford ahead of Wednesday’s transfer deadline.
But a move failed to materialise and the German midfielder has now been included in United’s Premier League squad. Mourinho has previously said it will be ‘difficult’ but not impossible for Schweinsteiger to play for United again.
Also listed in United’s squad is Sadiq El-Fitouri. The 21-year-old was signed from Salford City – owned by former United players Gary Neville, Phil Neville, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt and Paul Scholes – in January 2015 and has been a regular in Warren Joyce’s reserve team.
He is yet to make a senior appearance but signed a new one-year deal in the summer.
New signings Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Eric Bailly, Henrikh Mkhitaryan and Paul Pogba are also in the squad while the Premier League have confirmed Pogba counts as a ‘homegrown’ player.
Anthony Martial, Marcus Rashford and Timothy Fosu-Mensah are included on the list of Under-21 players due to their age along with academy arrivals Tahith Chong, Nishan Burkart and Joshua Bohui.
Photo: NASA
There has been an explosion on the launch pad at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where the aerospace company SpaceX was readying an unmanned rocket for launch, the BBC reports.
The cause of the blast is not clear and it is not known if anyone was hurt.
Nasa said SpaceX was test-firing a rocket which was due to take a satellite into space this weekend.
Pictures from the scene show a huge plume of smoke rising above the Cape Canaveral complex.
The force of the blast shook buildings several miles away.
Local emergency officials described the incident as a “catastrophic abort during a static test fire”.
CONGRATULATORY MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS KAREKIN II,
SUPREME PATRIARCH AND CATHOLICOS OF ALL ARMENIANS,
ON THE OCCASION OF THE DAY OF KNOWLEDGE
( September 1, 2016 )
From the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin we extend Our Pontifical blessings on the occasion of the Day of Knowledge, congratulating all the teachers, students and schoolchildren of educational institutions.
The mystery of the day expresses the desire and love of our people towards science and enlightenment, which has become a guarantor of our national longevity. Our nation celebrates every new Academic year with hope and expectations, that the soul and minds of our children be strengthened through the light of knowledge which is spread from the educational institutions. Education and knowledge are a God-given gift, enabling humanity to make their live safe and happy by recognizing his Creator and the world.
We extend our prayers to Almighty God asking to make the new academic year productive with His heaven-sent divine blessings, to grant strength and energy to teacher-lecturers and all devotees of education in order to educate a nation of deserving and talented children.
With the blessings of our Lord, may the new Academic year be fruitful with abundant merits for the sake of strengthening the Homeland and progress of our nation.
Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has hailed Manchester United’s capture of the ‘dangerous’ Henrikh Mkhitaryan, the Daily Star reports.
Wenger reckons Mkhitaryan is one of the most exciting new additions to the Premier League.
He said: “Mkhitaryan has always been a very good midfielder but last year was the first year where he scored goals.
“I think he scored 10 goals in the Bundesliga so that of course makes him more dangerous.
“He will bring something to Man United.”
United boss Jose Mourinho signed the 27-year-old Armenian from Borussia Dortmund for around £27m in July.
Mkhitaryan scored 23 times in 51 Dortmund appearances last term and was in high demand at the start of the summer.
Brazil’s Senate has voted to remove President Dilma Rousseff from office for manipulating the budget, the BBC reports.
It puts an end to the 13 years in power of her left-wing Workers’ Party. Ms Rousseff had denied the charges.
Sixty-one senators voted in favour of her dismissal and 20 against, meeting the two-thirds majority needed to remove her from the presidency.
Michel Temer has been sworn in as president and will serve out Ms Rousseff’s term until 1 January 2019.
Photo: AP
Swiss prosecutors are investigating German football legend Franz Beckenbauer as part of a corruption inquiry, the BBC reports.
In March, football’s world governing body Fifa began looking into six men for their part in Germany winning the rights to host the 2006 World Cup.
Swiss prosecutors now say they have launched their own investigations, linked to that of Fifa.
Mr Beckenbauer, who headed Germany’s bid, has denied corruption.
Last October, he said he had made a “mistake” in the bidding process to host the competition but denied votes had been bought.
Germany beat South Africa 12-11 in the vote, which took place in July 2000.
Germany’s Spiegel magazine reported on Thursday that the investigation centred on payments made from 2002-2005 that added up to more than 10m Swiss francs (£7.7m; $10.2m).
Further details are expected to be released by Switzerland’s attorney-general later on Thursday.
It is not yet known how many football officials are being investigated in Switzerland.
Asbarez – Denver-based Emmy Award winning composer Denise Gentilini and writing partner, internationally celebrated singer/songwriter Lisa Nemzo, bring their original production, I AM ALIVE to Los Angeles for an exclusive showing for one weekend only this September.
Gentilini, who is of Armenian descent, has assembled a largely non-Armenian cast to tell the story of the Armenian Genocide with a completely new focus; celebrating those who survived. Gentilini was inspired by the story of her own grandparents who survived the systematic killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire in 1915.
Using her childhood memories of her grandparents as well as transcripts from interviews with them, Gentilini/Nemzo used direct excerpts from their firsthand accounts for some lyrics and dialogue in the musical. This personal connection has allowed them to craft a complex experience that explores the human side of a politically contentious topic alongside the love story that unfolds between two people in an unimaginable set of circumstances.
With the 100 year anniversary behind us, this production is meant to provide closure around the tragedy and provide a renewed focus on the human spirit.
I AM ALIVE is produced by Well Orchestrated Madness and directed by Christy Montour-Larson and will be shown only one weekend on the West Coast. Partner organizations include; Jewish World Watch, Mashdots College, United Armenian Council, ANCA-WR and AFFMA. Armenians of Colorado serve as the fiscal sponsor.