Schweizerische Depeschenagentur AG (SDA)
SDA – Basisdienst Deutsch
18. August 2005
Schweiz – Tuerkei Ankara benennt Strasse nach Halacoglu,
Armenier-Genozid-Leugner
Istanbul
Die tuerkische Hauptstadt Ankara hat eine Strasse nach dem Historiker
Yusuf Halacoglu benannt, gegen den die Schweizer Justiz wegen
Genozid-Leugnung ermittelt.
Mit grosser Mehrheit beschloss der Stadtrat von Ankara in dieser
Woche, eine Strasse im Regierungsviertel Cankaya nach dem Vorsitzenden
der tuerkischen Gesellschaft fuer Geschichte zu benennen, wie die
Waadtlaender Tageszeitung “24 heures” am Donnerstag meldete.
In Cankaya sind zahlreiche diplomatische Vertretungen angesiedelt
– allerdings nicht die Schweizer Botschaft, die im Stadtviertel
Kavaklidere untergebracht ist.
Halacoglu tritt in der Debatte um die Massaker an den Armeniern
im untergehenden Osmanischen Reich als Wortfuehrer der tuerkischen
Position auf, wonach es damals zwar Uebergriffe gegen die armenische
Minderheit gegeben habe, nicht aber einen gezielten Voelkermord.
Weil er diese Position auch im Mai vergangenen Jahres in einer Rede in
Winterthur dargelegt hatte, ermittelt die dortige Staatsanwaltschaft
gegen ihn wegen moeglicher Verletzung der Antirassismusstrafnorm.
Verschiebung von Deiss-Besuch
Dies sowie ein weiteres Schweizer Verfahren gegen den Politiker
Dogu Perincek in der selben Angelegenheit hatte erst kuerzlich eine
Abkuehlung der Beziehungen Bern-Ankara zur Folge. Unter anderem
wurde ein fuer September geplanter Besuch von Bundesrat Joseph Deiss
in der Tuerkei von der Regierung in Ankara kurzfristig verschoben,
wie es offiziell hiess.
Die Strasse, die nun nach Halacoglu benannt wurde, trug bisher den
Namen des 1932 verstorbenen tuerkischen Intellektuellen Abdullah
Cevdet, der wegen seiner rassistischen Tendenzen in Misskredit
geraten ist.
Im Stadtrat von Ankara trat nur ein einziger Abgeordneter gegen die
Umbenennung auf. Es sei hoechst ungewoehnlich, eine Strasse nach
einem Lebenden zu benennen, argumentierte der Abgeordnete.

INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP WILL MAKE PUBLIC TWO REPORTS ON NAGORNY
KARABAKH IN SEPTEMBER
YEREVAN, AUGUST 19. ARMINFO. International Crisis Group (ICG) will
make public two reports on Nagorny Karabakh in September. The reports
will contain recommendations to Azerbaijan and Armenia. ICG Project
Director for the Caucasus Sabin Frazer informs RFE/RL, the 525th
newspaper reports.
According to the source, ICG Vice President Alen Deletrose will visit
Baku on September 8-9. ICG at first aspires to inform the regions and
other countries of the conflict. And, on the other hand, by means of
recommendations, we shall make proposals on possible settlement of
the conflict, she stated.

ARMENIAN PRESIDENT SENDS MESSAGE TO KILIKIA SAILING SHIP CREW
ARKA News Agency
Aug 19 2005
YEREVAN, August 19. /ARKA/. Armenian President Robert Kocharyan sent
a message to Kilikia sailing ship’s captain and crew congratulating
them with completing another round of their tour, Presidential Press
service reports. “Overcoming a huge distance and difficulties, you
embarked on cruise under our flag and displayed firmness and strong
will. Since 2004 Kilikia has crossed many seas and reached Atlantic
Ocean, just like Armenian Kilikian state’s sailing ship made in 13th
century. We are keeping eye on each stage of the cruise and glad
that Kilikia successfully arrived in English harbor of Portsmouth,
which you will leave the next year for continuing your way. I wish
sound health and happy return to the crew”, the message said.
AYAS, club of naval researches, has constructed a copy of Armenian
Kilikian trade sailing ship of 13th century, which started a
cruise following mediaeval routs around Europe through Black Sea,
Mediterranean and Atlantic Ocean. The vessel was constructed
in accordance with mediaeval manuscripts and epitomes with using
mediaeval technologies. In 2004, Kilikia entered 23 ports in 12
countries of Europe and Asia. The first stage of the expedition was
completed in the 2004 fall in Venice. On May 9, 2005, the ship put
to sea again. M.V. -0–

Ankara honore un historien turc poursuivi en Suisse
Schweizerische Depeschenagentur AG (SDA)
SDA – Service de base francais
18 août 2005
Istanbul (ats) La capitale turque Ankara a decide cette semaine de
rebaptiser une de ses rues en l’honneur de Yusuf Halacoglu. Cet
historien fait actuellement l’objet d’une enquete en Suisse pour
negation du genocide armenien.
La municipalite d’Ankara a accepte cette mesure a une très large
majorite, indique le quotidien “24 Heures” dans son edition de jeudi.
Un seul depute s’y est oppose, arguant qu’il n’est pas dans les usages
de donner a une rue le nom d’une personne encore vivante.
La nouvelle rue Halacoglu portait auparavant le nom d’Abdullah Cevdet,
leader “Jeune Turc” du debut du 20e siècle tombe en disgrâce pour ses
positions racistes. Elle est situee dans le quartier de Cankaya, siège
de nombreuses representations diplomatiques, mais pas de l’ambassade
suisse, qui se trouve dans le quartier de Kavaklidere.
Poursuivi pour negationnisme
Yusuf Halacoglu est le directeur de l’Institut turc d’histoire,
organe etatique gardien de l’histoire du pays. En tant que tel, il
est le porte-parole de la position officielle de la Turquie, selon
laquelle les attaques perpetrees en 1915 par l’Empire ottoman contre
la minorite armenienne ne constituaient pas un genocide cible.
Le ministère public zurichois avait ouvert une enquete contre
l’historien après des allegations semblables tenues lors d’un
discours a Winterthour en mai. La justice souhaitait determiner si
ces affirmations violaient la norme antiracisme. Cette enquete avait
provoque des tensions entre la Suisse et la Turquie.
Les relations entre les deux pays avaient encore ete mises a mal
par l’ouverture en juillet de procedures similaires dans les cantons
de Zurich et de Vaud contre le politicien Dogu Perincek. La visite
en Turquie du conseiller federal Joseph Deiss, prevue en septembre,
avait notamment ete reportee par les autorites d’Ankara.
–Boundary_(ID_NmlQQeEdlhTnnNcppoG8FQ)–

PACE President urges dialogue between government, opposition and civil society in Armenia
PACE, Europe
Aug 19 2005
Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) President Rene van
der Linden today completed a two-day visit to Armenia, as part of his
visit to the South-Caucasus from 18-23 August at – as he stressed –
“a crucial time for the country”. He held frank and constructive
discussions with all the relevant actors including representatives of
civil society. The main issues discussed were constitutional reforms.
The President urged dialogue between the government, opposition and
civil society. The constitutional reform was a test case for further
democratic development in Armenia and of its willingness to fulfil
its obligations and commitments to the Council of Europe, he said.
The success of the referendum would depend in particular on the
revision of voters’ lists, media independence and the organisation of
an effective public awareness raising campaign. The President appealed
to government and opposition parties to use the coming days to reach an
agreement on joint amendments, so as to attract the broadest support
for reform. He said that failure of the reform process would have
negative consequences for the country as a whole.
On the issue of Nagorno-Karabakh the President stated his intention
to enhance the possibility for parliamentary diplomacy available to
the countries’ PACE delegations as a complement to the primary means
of bilateral diplomacy and the Minsk Group process. He added that
democratic development in the two countries would create a better
climate for finding a solution.
He urged all political actors to enhance their efforts to ensure good
relations with Armenia’s neighbours.

PACE, Europe
Provisional edition
Constitutional reform process in Armenia
Resolution 1458 (2005)[1]
1. The Parliamentary Assembly recalls that the revision of
the Constitution is a pre-condition for the fulfilment of some of the
most important commitments that Armenia undertook upon its accession
to the Council of Europe. These include the reform of the judicial
system, local self-government reform, the introduction of an
independent ombudsman, the establishment of independent regulatory
authorities for broadcasting and the modification of the powers of
and access to the Constitutional Court. The deadlines for the
completion of these commitments, stipulated in the Assembly’s Opinion
No. 221 (2000) on Armenia’s application for membership of the Council
of Europe, have now long expired.
2. The Assembly therefore is deeply concerned that the delay
in agreeing and adopting the constitutional amendments is holding
back Armenia’s progress towards European democratic norms and
standards in key areas of political life.
3. The present Constitution, adopted in 1995, has played an
essential role in the development of democracy and its
irreversibility and has allowed Armenia to become a member of the
Council of Europe. However, its practical day-to-day implementation
has increasingly revealed serious conceptual shortcomings which have
become an obstacle for the further democratic development of the
country. In the first place, the Constitution endows the President
with excessive prerogatives and does not provide for clear separation
and balance of powers within the state structures. Equally serious is
the lack of constitutional guarantees for basic human rights, of
independence of the judiciary and of local self-government in
conformity with European standards.
4. The Assembly recalls the failure of the first referendum
on constitutional amendments of 25 May 2003 and the fact that the
authorities at the time had not committed themselves to a campaign in
support of the reform as parliamentary elections were held in
parallel. The subsequent deadline fixed by the Assembly in
Resolutions 1361 and 1405 (2004) for the holding of a new
constitutional referendum ~V not later than June 2005 ~V has been
missed.
5. The Assembly recalls that in 2001, the Armenian
authorities and the European Commission for Democracy through Law
(Venice Commission) had arrived at a mutually acceptable draft
Constitution in line with European standards. This draft, however,
underwent significant changes during its examination and adoption by
Parliament and the text submitted to referendum in May 2003
represented an important step back. The Assembly therefore insists
that such a scenario must not be repeated with the new draft.
6. The Assembly notes with approval the renewed active and
intensive co-operation between the Armenian authorities and the
Venice Commission since 2004. It regrets, however, that after several
expertises of different subsequent drafts and after the first reading
in Parliament on 11 May 2005, the draft still needs substantial
revision, according to the Venice Commission. In its second interim
opinion of 13 June 2005, the Venice Commission expressed deep
disappointment with the lack of satisfactory results, deploring the
fact that the recommendations, notably concerning the balance of
powers between the President and the Parliament, the independence of
the judiciary and the election of the Mayor of Yerevan (instead of
his/her appointment by the President), had not been taken into
account.
7. The Assembly welcomes the memorandum on further
co-operation signed between the Venice Commission working group and
the Armenian authorities on 2 June 2005. It commends the Armenian
authorities on presenting an improved version of the text within the
deadlines agreed in the memorandum. However, the Assembly insists
that the final proposed amendments do comply with all the
recommendations of the Venice Commission and are finally voted as
such by the National Assembly.
8. The Assembly underlines that the new constitutional
referendum can only succeed on the basis of a very broad public
consensus. In addition to the political significance of such an act,
the consensus is also needed for technical reasons ~V the
constitutional amendments must be approved by more than 50% of the
votes but not less than one third of all registered voters. It is
therefore important that the voters’ lists are updated so that the
necessary quorum can be achieved.
9. The Assembly deplores the breakdown of dialogue between
the ruling coalition and the opposition. It regrets that the ruling
coalition has not yet been able to agree on the three key requests of
the opposition which coincide with the recommendations of the Venice
Commission: separation and balance of powers, independent judiciary
and a real local self-government. It equally regrets the fact that
the opposition resorted to a boycott of parliamentary sittings. The
Assembly therefore strongly hopes that an agreement on the three
points will lead to the opposition returning to Parliament.
10. The Assembly points out that a proper awareness-raising
campaign in favour of the constitutional reform can only start after
agreement has been reached on the remaining problematic areas. If the
latest deadline for holding the referendum ~V November 2005 ~V is
respected, any further delay in reaching a political consensus can
jeopardise the chances of the draft being accepted by the population.
11. The Assembly reiterates its previous concerns with regard
to media pluralism and balanced political coverage in the electronic
media. The media, and television in particular, should play a major
role in allowing the public to make a well-informed choice in the
referendum. One of the main reasons for the present unsatisfactory
situation resides in the shortcomings of the Constitution with regard
to the appointment of members of the broadcasting regulatory bodies.
12. The Assembly strongly believes that, for the sake of its
own people and for the sake of its further European integration,
Armenia cannot afford another failure of the constitutional
referendum. It supports the expert advice of the Venice Commission as
a clear indication of the direction to follow and believes that if it
is backed by political will and democratic maturity, the necessary
ingredients for a successful constitutional reform would be in place.
13. The Assembly therefore calls on the Armenian authorities
and the parliamentary majority to:
i. fully implement the recommendations of the Venice
Commission;
ii. undertake clear and meaningful steps in order to resume
an immediate dialogue with the opposition;
iii. adopt the text at second reading without altering the
agreement reached with the Venice Commission on the above~Vmentioned
points and no later than August 2005;
iv. provide live broadcasting of the parliamentary sittings
where the constitutional amendments will be discussed and voted;
v. start a well-prepared and professional awareness-raising
campaign immediately after the adoption of the text at the second
reading;
vi. implement without delay the Assembly recommendations with
regard to media pluralism in order to guarantee the broadest possible
public debate;
vii. urgently update voters’ lists;
viii. hold the referendum no later than November 2005;
ix. and to provide for the coming into force of the
constitutional reform as soon as reasonably possible.
14. The Assembly calls on the opposition to stop its
parliamentary boycott and do everything possible to promote the
recommendations of the Council of Europe with regard to the
constitutional reform.
15. The Assembly expresses its support for the adoption of a
draft Constitution fully complying with the Council of Europe
standards and calls on all political forces and civil society to
assure the success of the constitutional reform.
16. The Assembly resolves to observe the constitutional
referendum and, in the meantime, declares its readiness to provide
any assistance that might be needed for its preparation.
[1] Assembly debate on 23 June 2005 (22nd Sitting) (see Doc. 10601,
report of the Committee on the Honouring of Obligations and
Commitments by Member States of the Council of Europe (Monitoring
Committee), Co-Rapporteurs: Mr Colombier and Mr Jaskiernia). Text
adopted by the Assembly on 23 June 2005 (22nd Sitting).

RIA Novosti, Russia
Aug 19 2005
CIS and Baltic press on Russia
[parts omitted]
ARMENIA
The media continue to show interest in the subject of the need for
Armenia’s integration with Europe. “Armenia has no alternative to
integration with Europe… In foreign policy, the republic should be
guided exclusively by economic interests, that dictate the need to take
a course for integration with the European Union” (Aravot, August 16.)
At the same time, the press continues assessing prospects for the
development of the Commonwealth of Independent States. “The CIS is
an interstate structure which really exists in the geopolitical sense
and which should be reckoned with… The Commonwealth has a positive
dynamics of the development of all-round ties”.(Armenpress, August 12.)
Experts are sure that Russia, which is interested in the preservation
of the status quo, fully controls the situation in Armenia. “As a
result of a revolution, our country may find itself under Russia’s
control, the way this happened in Kyrgyzstan… Russia may provide
assistance in carrying out a revolution in Armenia. Outstripping other
countries in this respect, Russia will try to preserve Armenia’s
pro-Russian authorities, which are suitable for it” (Aravot,
August 11.)
Against the background of a lull in political life in August,
several criminal incidents in various regions of Russia in which
Armenians suffered are widely covered in the press. The press is
publishing detailed reports about the incidents, refraining from
making comments yet.

Finally Armenian Officials Free Duke Scolar
Journal of Turkish Weekly, Turkey
Aug 19 2005
YERVAN – A Turkish scholar who was arrested in Armenia two months
ago was ordered freed after receiving a 2-year suspended sentence for
attempting to take old books out of the country. Yektan Turkyilmaz,
a doctoral student at Duke University whose plight had prompted
protests from intellectuals and former U.S. Sen. Bob Dole, was
convicted Tuesday of two counts of smuggling. Turkyilmaz visited
Armenia to make research on Armenian and Turkish history. Mr.
Turkyilmaz bought used books from ordinary second hand book shops, yet
the Armenian custom officers arrested him for attempting smuggling
antique books. Turkish and American academics condemned Yerevan
Government for the case. Dr. Nilgun Gulcan, Turkish researcher,
argued that no Turkish historian or IR expert could visit Armenia
after this case. “All Turkish academicians know that the real reason
is different. Buying used books could cost your life in Yerevan if you
are Turkish. Armenian archives are open but just to the pro-Government
Armenians. Neither Tashnak nor Armenia archives can be visited by
bipartisan researchers” she added.
At the request of prosecutors, the sentence was suspended. Authorities
said Turkyilmaz can leave Armenia after the verdict takes effect
Aug. 31. He has been held for almost two months in a former KGB
facility in Yerevan, Armenia’s capital.
Though the accusation was just book smuggling, the Armenian government
has not yet returned the computer disks on which he had stored months
of research from the Armenian national archives. Officials have said
the research material will be returned to Turkyilmaz when he leaves
the country.
Armenia argues that the 1915 Events were genocide and does not allow
Turkish historians to use Armenian documents. Turkish Ankara and
Istanbul archives are open to all researchers.

AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES DECIDE TO HOLD ELECTIONS IN KARABAKH
By Alman Mir – Ismail
Eurasia Daily Monitor, DC
The Jamestown Foundation
Aug 19 2005
Although the Azerbaijani constitution sets the number of national
parliamentary seats at 125, the actual number of deputies in the
Azerbaijani parliament has always been 124. The empty seat belonged
to district 122, located in Khankendi (Stepanakert), the capital of
Karabakh, which is currently under the control of Armenian military
formations. The loss of sovereignty over this territory has prevented
the Azerbaijani authorities from holding nation-wide elections there.
Not any more.
On August 12, the Central Election Commission of Azerbaijan voted
in favor of restoring election district 122 and constituting its
district election commission (Echo, August 13). Mazahir Panahov, the
chairman of the CEC, believes that this act is aimed at restoring the
constitutional rights of the citizens of Azerbaijan. Official Baku
considers the Armenian residents of Karabakh to be its citizens. This
decision therefore opens opportunities for them, as well as for the
ethnic Azerbaijanis deported from Khankendi, to vote for the first
time since the 1994 ceasefire.
“Until this time, efforts to do this have not been made. The CEC has
received many complaints about this. Both commission members as well
as the public have supported this decision. It is up to the citizens
now to exercise their constitutional rights,” Panahov added (525-ci
Qazet, August 17).
It is estimated that 10,000 ethnic Azerbaijanis have become Internally
Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Khankendi, and they currently reside in
Baku and surrounding areas. The Azerbaijani election code does not
have a minimum turnout requirement to make elections valid. Thus,
even if the Armenian residents of Khandenki boycott the elections,
participation by the Azerbaijani IDPs would be sufficient to legitimize
the results.
At the moment, it is not clear where the district election commission
will be based and how they are planning to encourage the ethnic
Armenian residents of Khankendi to vote. Plans call for the CEC,
which has six members, including one ethnic Armenian, to prepare
an appeal to all ethnic Armenians to exercise their constitutional
rights. The CEC will also consider some produces to allow them to
vote electronically. CEC secretary Natig Mammadov has said, “From
now on the Azerbaijani citizens of Armenian ethnicity, living in
Nagorno-Karabakh can vote” (525-ci Qazet, August 13).
Meanwhile, on August 16 the opposition daily Yeni Musavat reported
that two candidates have been already nominated from this district.
One of them is Isi Bagirov, the former deputy chief of the Khankendi
air conditioner factory. Bagirov claims that he has had good relations
with Armenian residents in Khankendi, including the current self-styled
“president of the Nagorno-Karabakh republic,” Arkady Gukasyan, as
well as with Armenian President Robert Kocharian, who also comes from
Karabakh. Bagirov’s candidacy is supported by the united opposition
coalition Azadliq (Freedom). The other candidate, Seymur Bayca,
is running as an independent. The number of candidates will likely
increase in the next week.
Interestingly, the CEC decision has the support of all interest
groups in Azerbaijani society, including the most radical ones. Akif
Nagi, chairman of the Karabakh Liberation Organization, the most
pro-war civic organization in the country, has also welcomed the
move. “Our organization proposed this idea last year, during the
municipal elections,” says Nagi, “but at that time the CEC refused
our proposal. Now, the decision of the CEC once again showed that
Khankendi is an Azerbaijani town and that Nagorno-Karabakh is the
territory of Azerbaijan. If Karabakh Armenians respect Azerbaijani
laws, then their rights and freedoms will be provided. Just like
their election rights have been provided for” (Sherg, August 17).
Another independent expert on elections, Eldar Ismaylov, head of
the NGO “For the Sake of Civil Society,” also believes that the
decision of the CEC was right. “This decision carries more of a
propaganda purpose. Even if this time it will be impossible to hold
elections there, it can be important for the future elections” (Sherg,
August 16). Ismaylov also believes that electronic voting will not
be sufficient, because not many ethnic Armenians in Karabakh have
access to the Internet.
The Armenian residents of Khankendi will probably not participate in
this vote. But for official Baku, the importance of the situation
is more symbolic. Azerbaijani authorities want to show to the
international community that they are pursuing a policy of engagement,
rather than antagonizing the Armenian community of Karabakh. Thus,
the situation is more political than practical. As negotiations
over the Karabakh conflict continue in a positive course and both
sides report some general agreements on certain issues, Azerbaijan
wants to show to the Armenians that it is open to co-existence and
mutual compromise. Similarly, last week the management of the newly
established Public TV in Azerbaijan decided to produce programs in
the Armenian language. These efforts will eventually demonstrate that
the rights of Armenian minority are not violated in Azerbaijan.
Besides, with this act, Azerbaijani authorities seek to reduce the
legitimacy of the “election” previously held by the unrecognized
authorities of Karabakh. In the past, both the CEC and the Foreign
Ministry of Azerbaijan, as well as international organizations such as
the Council of Europe, UN, and OSCE, have criticized these unofficial
elections, saying that they “hinder the peace process.”

Zaman, Turkey
Aug 19 2005
Tourists in Ani Ruins Taken out of Military Zone
By Murat Kaban
Published: Friday, August 19, 2005
zaman.com
The Turkish council of Ministers and General Staff abolished the
military forbidden zone around the Ani Ruins on the Turkish-Armenian
border in 2004.
About 15,000 tourists visited Ani antique city within a year. Since
the ruin was under the context of a first level military zone,
local and foreign ministers were not allowed to visit the region
without permission and identity information.The History of the
Ani Antique City extends to great cultural monuments like the Abul
Menucehr Mosque,the first mosque built in 1072 by (Turks) Seljuks,
and Fethiye Mosque (Big Cathedral). The antique city, encompassing
five kilometers of land, includes 10 churches, a palace, two mosques,
a bridge and a caravansaray.
The Culture and Turism Director in Kars, Kenan Bekis, said they
expected about 20,000 to 30,000 tourists to visit the Ani Ruins.
Ýndicating that the Turkish Tourism and Culture Ministry are
continuing environmental plans for the ruins, Bekis said excavations
that began in the beginning of July would continue until September
15. “Tourists rarely visited Ani Ruins while it was protected as
a military prohibited zone because visits required many procedural
documents from military authorities and the museum directorate.
However, now everyone can buy tickets and visit the area. A Six-person
cadre under the Turkish Finance Ministry will provide security in the
Ani Ruins. Moreover, the Tourism Gendarme will determine the tourism
zones to be protected. We also held a meeting with the Governor of
Kars, Nevzat Turhan, at his presidency. We applied for the Gendarme’s
General Commandership for Ani’s security.
We will also achieve security through this way.
Located in Ocakli village, 42 kilometers away from Kars, is the antique
city of Ani. The city was established in 5000 B.C within the Turkish
boundaries on the western side of Arapcay River, which separates the
Turkish-Armenian border. It was the first accommodation center along
the Silk Road, and as a result today it a famous trade center. The
inner fortress, which encircles the city was built by the Karsaklilar,
who renamed the city as Kars in 400 (A.D.). The city of Ani hosted
many societies such as the Karsaklilar, Ýlhanlilar, Seddatogullari,
Karakoyunlular, Georgians, Harzemsahlar, and the Seljuk Empire.
Some of the remains found in Ani Ruins are as follows:
Menucehr Mosque: The mosque is located in the antique city, Ani. It
was built by Abu Suca Manucher from the Seddatogullari in 1072 and
it is known as the first mosque built by the Seljuks in Anatolia.
Abul Muammeral Mosque (Boz Minaret): It is in the center of the
antique city. It was built by the last Seddatli Sultan, Sahan Sah.
The minaret of the destroyed mosque remains collapsed on the site.
Virgin Mary Cathedral (Fethiye Mosque): The construction work of
the cathedral began in 1010 in Ani city center during Sambat II.’s
period. It was completed during Gagik I’s period. The cathedral
was used as a mosque for some time after Alparslan’s conquest. This
building is among the most well-preserved buildings in Ani.
Kecel Church: It was built in 1034-1036 by the son of Abugremrizents
Dakkavi, who is the grandson of Gregor. The church was repaired by
pope Tridot in 1173. A bell tower was added to the main structure
in 1291 and the dome was repaired in 1342. Half of the structure is
still partially damaged due lightning strikes.
–Boundary_(ID_asFA1TsQBWSQw4Wh69H5Vw)–