Category: News

The German outfit comfortably beat a much-changed Spurs side for the second week running, with the striker scoring twice on the night and Heung-min Son adding a consolation, according to Goal.com.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored twice as Borussia Dortmund eased into the Europa League quarter-finals with an aggregate 5-1 win over Tottenham.

The striker ended any slender hopes Spurs had of overhauling a 3-0 deficit from the first leg when he beat Hugo Lloris from long range in the 24th minute.

Aubameyang took his tally for the season to 35 with a second goal in the 70th minute, with Lloris failing to keep out a powerful drive that deflected into the net off the Frenchman’s right arm.

Neven Subotic’s weak back pass allowed Son Heung-min score, although his effort was no more than a consolation for a Tottenham side who were thoroughly outplayed over the two legs.

Baku will send a protest letter to Belgium’s executive and legislative bodies over the visit of Belgian MPs to Nagorno Karabakh, Hikmet Hajiyev, Spokesman for Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry mtold Trend.

Hajiyev further added that the Belgian MPs will be included in the list of ‘persona non grata’ of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry.

Within the framework of a recent visit to Nagorno Karabakh Flemish lawmakers , held meetings with Head of the Artsakh Diocese, Archbishop Pargev Martirosyan and .

The delegation was headed by Kaspar Karampetian, President of the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD).

President Serzh Sargsyan had a meeting with Chrysostomos II, Archbishop of Nova Justiniana and All Cyprus.

President Sargsyan attached importance to inter-religious tolerance and respect for each other’s faith, which, he said, is one of the pillars of the Armenian-Cypriot friendship.

Noting that the reciprocal sympathy between the Armenian and Cypriot peoples is connected with their commitment to and respect for the same universal values, Serzh Sargsyan noted that the church has been implementing this important mission for centuries. He added that the church also assumed part of the state’s role in a period of Armenian history, when we had lost statehood.

President Sargsyan said “the issues of reinforcement of religious values remains important today, taking into consideration that the current globalization processes are full of negative consequences, and fighting them is the imperative of the time, especially for small peoples, from the point of view of preservation of national identity, cultural and religious values.

During the meeting President Sargsyan expressed gratitude to the authorities and people of Cyprus for the careful attitude towards Armenians in the country.

The Archbishop of All Cyprus praised the warm brotherly relations established with the Armenian people. He said the Church of Cyprus maintains good relations with the whole Christian world, including the Armenian Church, which, he said contributes to the reinforcement of inter-state relations.

 

 

 

“Armenia and Russia continue negotiations on gas price cut,” Armenian Minister of Energy and Natural Resources Levon Yolyan told reporters after the government sitting today.

“It’s an issue of clash of interests, and we’re discussing it,” the Minister said. He added that the talks aim to have the price cut for consumers, as well.

Speaking about the re-launching of the “Nairit” plant, the Minister noted that the talks are under way and offers are expected by April 2016.

Will Georgia finally import Iranian gas through the territory of Armenia? Levon Yolyan said Energy Ministers of Armenia, Iran, Georgia and Russia are going to meet in Tbilisi on April 11-13, and the issue will be finally solved.

“We’re actively working to get more actively involved in regional energy programs,” the Minister stated.

Photo by Raul Roa

 

April 24 will be now designated “Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day” in the Glendale Unified School District after a unanimous vote by school board members on Tuesday, according to the .

Since the 2013-14 school year, students and teachers have been given the day off on April 24 — globally observed as the recognition of the Armenian Genocide — because so many of them take part in genocide events, such as the annual remembrance march through Hollywood.

However, school officials wanted to locally brand the day, which until now was referred to only as a non-instructional day.

“Every calendar in the school district, it’s going to be printed ‘Armenian Genocide [Commemoration] Day,” said board member Greg Krikorian. “It’s going to be embedded in there.”

Glendale Unified is the first school district in the country to establish a day in remembrance of the genocide, which began in 1915 and resulted in the killing of 1.5 million Armenians at the hands of the Ottoman Empire.

Glendale has one of the largest Armenian populations outside of Armenia.

Krikorian said the genocide remembrance day is also about welcoming other ethnicities to participate and learn about the genocide, adding that while growing up in Hartford, Conn., he learned a lot about the local Irish and Italian populations.

“I think it’s good to know what your neighbors and co-workers went through,” he said.

Christine Walters, board president, echoed those statements, saying the commemoration day is also a lesson about man’s inhumanity to man.

“I think for us to be able to really embrace our cultural history and our collective cultural history is extremely important and really educating students about how things can get out of control,” she said.

While it is important to afford people the time to observe April 24 in their own ways, it’s also significant for the day to have a label, said board member Armina Gharpetian.

“Naming the day has a lot more value and meaning to our students, to our teachers, to the whole entire district and the city,” she said.

Elen Asatryan, executive director of the Armenian National Committee of America – Western Region, praised the decision during the school board meeting.

She spoke of the massive relief effort by the United States immediately following the Armenian Genocide in the form of aid, including opening 400 orphanages and caring for 132,000 orphans. Establishing “Armenian Genocide Commemoration Day” is a way of expressing appreciation for that aid, Asatryan said.

“You’re also commemorating those who have really risked their lives and gone overseas during that time to really help save the Armenian nation,” she said.

On 17 March 2016, the European Union and Armenia held the seventh round of human rights dialogue in Yerevan.

The Armenian delegation was headed by Mr Garen Nazarian, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, and included officials and executives from different ministries and state agencies.

The EU Delegation was headed by Ms Elisabeth Tison, Head of Division, Human Rights Strategy and Policy Implementation, European External Action Service.

The dialogue was held in an open and constructive atmosphere, with discussions on a wide range of issues of mutual interest and concern, and allowed for an exchange of views on the human rights situation both in Armenia and in the EU.

Both sides acknowledged the progress in the reform process regarding the protection and promotion of human rights in Armenia.

The talks, in particular, were focused on: the national framework for the protection of human rights and the country’s commitment to achieving further progress in this area. Discussions also covered the judicial reform with a focus on penitentiary system; elections and electoral code; issues related to political freedoms and civil liberties and participation of civil society; anti-discrimination policy and protection of vulnerable groups; the situation with the rights of the child, and gender equality.

The partners also touched upon possibilities for concrete cooperation in the field of human rights within international organisations, in particular at the UN, the OSCE and the Council of Europe.

Both partners committed to continue their cooperation on these issues, and to promote the respect of human rights and democracy on national, regional and international level. Based on their shared values, they underlined the importance of the EU support in promoting reforms in Armenia.

The Armenia-EU human rights dialogue was established in December 2009. Since then, the meetings are convened once a year, alternately in Yerevan and Brussels.

“My purpose here today is to assert in my judgment, (ISIS) is responsible for genocide against groups in areas under its control including Yazidis, Christians and Shiite Muslims,” he said, during a news conference at the State Department.

Kerry said in 2014, ISIS trapped Yazidis killed them, enslaved thousands of Yazidi women and girls “selling them at auction, raping them at will and destroying the communities in which they had lived for countless generations,” executed Christians “solely for their faith” and also “forced Christian women and girls into slavery.”

“Without our intervention, it is clear that those people would have been slaughtered,” he said.

This is the first time that the United States has declared a genocide since Darfur in 2004.

The Archaeological site of Ererouyk and the village of Ani Pemza in Armenia, Patarei Sea Fortress in Tallinn inEstonia, Helsinki-Malmi Airport in Finland, Colbert Swing Bridge in Dieppe in France, the Kampos of Chios in Greece, the Convent of St. Anthony of Padua in Extremadura in Spain, and the Ancient city of Hasankeyf and its surroundings inTurkey have been named as the . Europa Nostra, the leading European heritage organisation, and the European Investment Bank Institute (EIBI) made the announcement during a public event at the Ateneo Veneto in Venice, Italy.

These gems of Europe’s cultural heritage are in serious danger, some due to lack of resources or expertise, others due to neglect or inadequate planning. Urgent action is therefore needed. Expert missions to the sites will be arranged and feasible action plans submitted by the end of the year. ‘The 7 Most Endangered’ has the support of the Creative Europe programme of the European Union, as part of Europa Nostra’s network project ‘Mainstreaming Heritage’.

Europa Nostra and the European Investment Bank Institute, together with other partners and the nominators, will visit the 7 selected sites and meet with key stakeholders in the coming months. The heritage and financial experts will provide technical advice, identify possible sources of funding and mobilise broad support.

The 7 Most Endangered for 2016 were selected by the Board of Europa Nostra from the 14 sites shortlisted by a panel of specialists in history, archaeology, architecture, conservation, project analysis and finance. Nominations were submitted by civil society or public bodies which form part of Europa Nostra’s vast network of member and associate organisations from all over Europe.

The 7 Most Endangered heritage sites in Europe in 2016

Ererouyk is a superb monument of Early Christian architecture, an architecture of great variety and distinction, today often subjected to neglect, if not willful destruction, in most of its original homeland around the Eastern Mediterranean. Armenian religious architecture, amongst the finest and most innovative, is well represented by Ererouyk. The monument dates back to the 6th century and lies on a rocky plateau close to the river that forms the border with Turkey, in the vicinity of the ancient capital Ani. All around the three-aisled basilica lay the remains of funerary and other relevant monuments which deserve immediate study and preservation. This is crucial for the understanding of a settlement within a multi-ethnic and multi-cultural framework during the Middle Ages, as demonstrated by relevant archaeological findings that also need to be studied and displayed.

The site is at constant danger from earthquakes, a danger increased by the condition of the monument. Yet, if preserved and well managed, it has the potential to give life to the whole region as a site that will attract visitor, with the nearby Soviet-era style village of Ani Pemza, built in 1926, serving as a potential centre for cultural tourism.

The Centre of Studies and Documentation of Armenian Culture in Italy (CSDCA) submitted the nomination for ‘The 7 Most Endangered’ 2016.

Patarei is a complex of buildings, originally built as a naval fortress under Tsarist rule in 1829-1840. It became a prison between 1920 and 2005, and contains monuments to victims of both Nazi and Stalinist rule. The site is thus closely linked to the sad vicissitudes of Estonia’s recent history. Its rapid deterioration is due to lack of maintenance in harsh climatic conditions.

Helsinki-Malmi Airport is a rare surviving example of pre-World War II aviation architecture, built for the 1940 Olympic Games, scheduled to be held in Helsinki but cancelled due to the war.

Malmi Airport, complete with its original hangar, terminal and runways, is still in use with about 40,000 landings per year, offering the only free-schedule international service within 150 km. The area has been declared a cultural environment of national significance by Finland’s National Board of Antiquities. Its open meadow has considerable biodiversity and makes the nature path encircling the site very popular among locals. Helsinki’s new General Plan proposes to fill the airport with apartment blocks to be constructed in the early 2020s, while the state is to withdraw its operations from the airport by the end of 2016.

The Colbert Bridge, built in 1889, is contemporary with the Eiffel Tower and still functions with its original system of hydraulic pression, carrying about 12,000 vehicles and 1,800 pedestrians daily, makes it an important example of the technical and architectural achievements of the late 19th century. It swings 6 to 8 times each day for the harbour traffic and ensures greater reliability than many modern bridges.

Although one of the earliest examples of “moveable” architecture, a living memory of Dieppe’s cultural and social history and potentially a tourist attraction, its owner, the Syndicat Mixte du Port de Dieppe is planning to demolish it and replace it with a new structure in 2017.

The Kampos of Chios is a semi-urban, semi-rural area where the islands’ wealthier families built beautiful mansions of local stone, surrounded by citrus orchard estates. The 200 houses and towers which survive, combined with high stone walls separating the estates and narrow surrounding lanes, create a poetic landscape.

The Convent of St. Anthony of Padua near Cáceres comprises a late Gothic church, built in 1476 with some small additions in the Renaissance period and, most notably, others from between 1656 and 1661. The convent lies in the village of Garrovillas de Alconétar, which has a long history and a wealth of monuments; all in danger of dereliction as its inhabitants move on to larger cities.

Hasankeyf, sitting on the banks of the River Tigris, is one of the most important architectural and archaeological sites in Europe, boasting a rich biodiversity and 12,000 years of human history. Masterpieces of Islamic architecture, dating from the 12th to 15th centuries C.E., make the town one of the best preserved witnesses to Seljuk urban culture, particularly from the Artukid and Ayyubid dynasties.

In addition, Europa Nostra and the EIB Institute – following a firm recommendation from an international advisory panel of experts – decided that the Venice Lagoonin Italy should be declared the most endangered heritage site in Europe.

There could be no Venice and no Venetian civilization without the lagoon. Few historic sites in the world demonstrate so clearly the interdependence of humankind with our environment, of nature with culture.

Yet just as the world contributes to the conservation of monuments in the city, unsustainable development is cutting the physical branch on which Venice has always perched.

Pope Francis has awarded Armenian Ambassador to the Vatican Mikael Minsyan with a Knight’s Grand Cross Order of Pius IX, press Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs.

At a solemn ceremony in the Apostolic Palace in Vatican, Giovanni Angelo Becciu, Substitute for General Affairs to the Secretary of State of the Holy See, handed the Order to Amb. Minasyan.

The Papal letter says Mikael Minasyan was awarded the pontifical title “as a proof of Our benevolence towards You.”

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan is attending the summit of the European People’s Party (EPP) in Brussels today. Chaired by EPP President Joseph Dole, European Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker, the heads of state and government of EU Eastern Partnership countries represented in the EPP.

Participants of the summit are expected to discuss the settlement of the existing economic issues and perspectives of development, the current global challenges, including the Syria crisis, migrant issues, the political conjuncture in EU member states and issues related to the European Neighborhood Policy.