Category: News

Asbarez – Citizens concerned about the safety of Garo Paylan, a member of the Turkish Parliament who has come under violent attack due to his Armenian identity and the free expression of his views, can now call upon the State Department, Amnesty International, and Human Rights Watch to speak out in his defense, using the Armenian National Committee of America’s dedicated portal: .

Videos of attacks on Mr. Paylan, in the Turkish Parliament and Constitutional Commission, have gone viral, and have been featured on major media outlets.With one click, advocates can write to Tom Malinowski, State Department Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor; Ken Roth, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch; and Margaret Huang, Interim Executive Director of Amnesty International – USA. In their letters addressed to these three officials, supporters of Garo Paylan’s safety call for “public alarms” to be raised over the escalating threats and acts of violence directed against him. The letters specifically call for a forthright condemnation of those who seek to intimidate and incite hatred against Paylan.

Earlier this week, the ANCA called upon U.S. Ambassador to Turkey John Bass to publicly voice official U.S. concern regarding the safety of Garo Paylan. In the May 3rd letter, ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian compared Paylan’s persecution to that of noted Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, who was gunned down in broad daylight in 2007. “Prior to his [Dink’s] cold-blooded murder, the ANCA had called for an open expression of U.S. concern for his safety. Sadly, none was forthcoming. The only public words raised in his defense were those eulogizing him after his death,” noted Hamparian.

Late in the evening of May 9th, the day before the birth of former Azerbaijani President Heydar Aliyev, graffiti found its way onto a statue dedicated to the same man, in a park in Baku,  Meydan TV reports.

The inscription read: “Happy Slave Day!”

The unknown author took the Azerbaijani phrase, “Gül bayramınız mübarək!”, changed the first two letters of the first word and thereby completely changed the meaning of the phrase from, “Happy Flower Day!” to “Happy Slave Day!”

Flower Day is celebrated every year in Baku and other large regional Azerbaijani cities on the 10th of May to coincide with the birthday of the former president of Azerbaijan, Heydar Aliyev.

Every year in preparation for the holiday, the government spends tens of millions of dollars on flowers from Holland, Italy, France, Turkey, China and other countries. This has elicited criticism and contempt from civil society.

US President Barack Obama is to visit Hiroshima this month – the first serving president to travel to the Japanese city, which was hit by a US nuclear attack in 1945, the BBC reports.

The visit will be part of an Asian trip that will also take in Vietnam.

The Hiroshima bombing on 6 August 1945 killed 140,000 people. Along with a second bombing on Nagasaki – it is credited with ending World War Two.

Jimmy Carter has visited Hiroshima, but after the end of his presidency.

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian received today Ambassador Herbert Salber, the EU Special representative for the South Caucasus and the Conflict in Georgia.

Minister Nalbandian briefed Ambassador Salber on the harm the Azerbaijani aggression against Karabakh has caused to the negotiation process and presented the efforts targeted at the elimination of its consequences.

The EU Special Representative noted that there is no military solution to the Karabakh conflict and added that “the European Union supports the efforts of the OSCe Misnk Group targeted at exclusively peaceful settlement of the issue.

The EU Special Representative mentioned that the issue has no military solution and the European Union supports the efforts of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs for exclusively peaceful settlement of the issue.

The interlocutors exchanged thoughts on the possibilities of resumption of the negotiations. In this regard, Edward Nalbandian stressed that currently any possible meetings could be aimed at the elimination of the repetition of Azerbaijan’s aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh of early April, the unconditional implementation of the trilateral ceasefire and ceasefire consolidation agreements of 1994-1995, which have no time limitations, the creation of a mechanism for investigation of ceasefire violations. According to Edward Nalbandian, those steps would create appropriate conditions for the continuation of the negotiation process.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia and the EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the Crisis in Georgia reflected on Armenia-European Union relations, negotiations on the legal basis of the relations.

Borussia Dortmund have announced that centre-back Mats Hummels will sign for Bayern Munich at the beginning of the summer transfer window.

The centre-back came through the ranks at the Allianz Arena side and had expressed a desire to return in recent weeks.

It was not immediately clear who was killed in the massive attack, whose explosion could be heard across the city and which caused damage to buildings near the site of the detonation.

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian will leave for France on May 12 for a working visit, Press Service of the Ministry of Foreign affairs reports.

Minister Nalbandian is expected to have meetings with French Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayraul, other high-ranking officials.

On May 10, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Nagorno Karabakh Republic Karen Mirzoyan, during his working visit to Yerevan, met with EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the crisis in Georgia, Herbert Salber.

During the meeting, Karen Mirzoyan briefed Herbert Salber on the military aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan against the NKR in early April, as well as on its consequences, stressing that it had become an unprecedented violation of the trilateral ceasefire agreement of 1994.

Karen Mirzoyan noted that striving to undermine the negotiation process and by rejecting all the initiatives aimed at the stabilization of the situation, Azerbaijan had attempted to resolve the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict by military means.

The NKR Foreign Minister drew the attention of the Special Representative of the European Union to the fact that the Azerbaijani aggression against the NKR was accompanied by numerous war crimes, as well as a gross violation of the laws and customs of war and norms of international humanitarian law.

Karen Mirzoyan also recalled that the NKR authorities had repeatedly warned the international community that the lack of decisive and targeted condemnation created a false sense of permissiveness in Baku and paved the way for new military ventures.

The NKR Foreign Minister emphasized the importance of visits by diplomats and representatives of international organizations to the NKR for getting the objective picture of the current situation and obtaining comprehensive information about the causes and consequences of the Azerbaijani aggression.

 The sides noted the importance of efforts aimed at the exclusion of further attempts to destabilize the situation and creation of necessary conditions for the resumption of the peaceful settlement process of the Azerbaijani-Karabakh conflict.

The interlocutors also exchanged views on a range of issues of mutual interest.

The NKR Defense Army managed to rebuff the Azeri aggression for a second time, David Jamalyan, Adviser to Armenian Defense Minister, said in an interview with .

“This fact further legitimizes today’s Artsakh within its current de facto borders, legitimized the right of the people of Artsakh to self-determination and independence. For a second time Artsakh proved its right to live as a free and independent country on its area of 11, 432 square kilometers,” David Jamalyan said.

According to him, this was the first military-political conclusion of the military actions in April.

A second military conclusion is that the NKR Defense Army managed to prevent the Azeri aggression without the intensive interference of the Armenian Armed Forces.

Third, he said, is the great number of Azeri casualties amounting to 2,000 and beyond, and the quality here is more important than quantity, Jamalyan said. “Two third of the special forces of Azerbaijani army has been destroyed, and Azerbaijan will need time to recover the losses,” he added.

The aim of the military-political leadership of Azerbaijan was to proceed to the rear of the Defense Army. It intended to reach Sarsang Reservoir in the direction of Martakert, to the outskirts of Askeran in the center and Jrakan (Jabrail) to the south, the Adviser to the Defense Minister said.

David Jamalyan stressed that the public should be ready for large-scale military actions any time, especially considering that the fragile ceasefire is based on a verbal agreement between the Chiefs of Staff of the Armed Forces of Armenia and Azerbaijan.

President Serzh Sargsyan received Herbert Salber, EU Special Representative for the South Caucasus and the Conflict in Georgia.

President Sargsyan presented his views on the escalation of the situation as a result of Azerbaijan’s non-constructive and belligerent stance, and the reasons behind that country’s attempts to foil the negotiation process.

Referring to the facts of the war crimes committed by the Azeri armed forces during the April events, President Sargsyan stressed the need for immediate reaction on the part of the international community and specialized bodies to such impermissible and condemnable actions.

The parties underlined that there is no alternative to the peaceful resolution of the conflict.