Screenshot of Wisma E&C's security footage showing the men who allegedly abducted Turgay Karaman.
Malaysia becoming "a handmaiden to 'Islamist' Turkey's repression"? (Nst).
KUALA LUMPUR: Two Turkish nationals who went missing in Malaysia have been arrested as a security threat, the police chief announced Wednesday, but a rights group raised concerns of possible pressure from Ankara for the detentions.
National police chief Khalid Abu Bakar tweeted that Turgay Karaman and Ihsan Aslan were arrested "because they threatened the security of Malaysia."
No further details were provided by authorities and the Turkish embassy refused to comment.
Local media reports had been circulating allegations that both men had been abducted.
Another Turkish national Suheyl Ozcelik on Tuesday lodged a police report saying he had seen CCTV footage of five men abducting Karaman, a physics teacher, at a Kuala Lumpur carpark.
"The CCTV recordings clearly showed the faces of these five unknown men who blocked Mr Turgay's (Karaman) face from the camera," he said in the police report seen by AFP.
Ozcelik also said two of his Turkish friends were abducted last year and deported to Turkey.
"I am very afraid for my safety and scared that my Turkish friends who are kidnapped and sent to Turkey will be tortured and killed," he said in his police report, without indicating possible reasons.
Media reports say the other arrested Turk, Ihsan Aslan, is a businessman.
Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said the national police chief should grant the two men immediate access to their lawyers and families and give details of how they posed a threat to Malaysia.
He said Malaysia should not become "a handmaiden to Turkish repression".
"They should not be taking the word of the Turkish government as their only source of information on Turkish nationals overseas," Robertson told AFP.
"The Turkish government is on a witch hunt against the perceived enemies of President Erdogan."
The crackdown focuses on alleged supporters of the US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, blamed for the failed coup. Read the full story here.
Turkish consulate in The Netherlands urges Dutch Turks to report insults to Erdogan. (DutchNews).
The Turkish consulate
in Rotterdam has urged Turkish nationals to report examples of president
Recep Tayyip Erdogan being insulted and denigrating comments made about
Turks in general, Dutch media said on Thursday afternoon.
Various Turkish organisations in the Netherlands have been emailed by
the consulate, urging them to make a note of the insults.
The call comes
a day after the Dutch government said it would scrap legislation which
makes insulting a friendly head of state a criminal offence.
The consulate is looking for social media posts which incite hatred or
contain insulting comments as well as email and traditional letters,
Dutch Turkish news site Zaman Vandaag says.
The consulate was not available for comment but a spokesman for the
Turkish embassy in The Hague told RTL news that a hate campaign had been
launched against Turkey since it emerged that a German comedian faces
prosecution for insulting Erdogan.
‘We want to monitor the situation,’ the embassy said.
In some emails received by the embassy, Erdogan has been compared to
Hitler, RTL says. In others, Turks are urged to leave the Netherlands as
soon as possible.
Parliament
MPs have raised questions about what they are calling unwanted
interference in Dutch affairs. Socialist MP Sadet Karabulut said the
call was a sign of Erdogan’s ‘long arm of influence’ in the Netherlands.
Joram van Klaveren,
from the right-wing VNL, said the consul should be called to The Hague
to explain. ‘Turkey needs to be reminded of the right to freedom of
speech, considering some 2,000 Turks are being prosecuted for insulting
the president,’ he said.
In Germany, Turkey has been given the green light to take legal action
against Jan Böhmermann, a comedian who read out an offensive poem about
Erdogan on television.
Some 400,000 people of Turkish origin live in the Netherlands and
the Dutch branch of the Turkish opposition party CHP says it calls taken
from a number of people concerned.
Prime Minister Mark Rutte said he was surprised. "It's not obvious
what the Turkish government is trying to achieve with this action," he
said.
Integration Minister Lodewijk Asscher accused the Turkish embassy of interfering in freedom of speech in the Netherlands.
Initially the Turkish embassy declined to comment, saying merely that it had seen an increase in hate messages.
But after the story had prompted an outcry in the Netherlands, the embassy said there had been a misunderstanding.
It
said a consulate employee had used an unfortunate choice of words in
its message sent to Turkish groups in the Netherlands, Dutch broadcaster
NOS reported. Apparently the consulate had only asked to hear about
racist statements and hate campaigns.
The Turkish consulate's offending email:
"To the relevant person, We ask urgently for the names and
written comments of people who have given derogatory, disparaging,
hateful and defamatory statements against the Turkish president, Turkey
and Turkish society in general, which have reached the members and
relatives of your non-governmental organisations or fellow citizens from
your surroundings via their social media addresses (such as Twitter or
Facebook) or via the official address and e-mail addresses of your
non-governmental organisation, to be sent in before the close of
business on 21 April 2016 by email to the consulate general in Rotterdam
Yours sincerely..."
#Turkey lawmaker Mahmut Tanal submits a motion in Parliament asking whether gov't ordered embassies for a sweep on #Erdogan insults
Turkish state forces continue the onslaught in Nusaybin district of Mardin, while the people also keep on resisting against the brutal attacks by state forces. Reports are coming through from the district that Turkish military forces open artillery fires on neighbourhoods in the district, while also raining bullets from armoured vehicles.
In Kanarya Street of Abdülkadir neighbourhood, Turkish troops opened artillery fires on houses from tanks. Eyewitnesses told at least 7 blasts took place in the street, in which many houses were damaged while 3 persons were wounded, including one heavily. The wounded can not be taken to hospital due to the ongoing fire opened by snipers from high buildings.
In the meantime, special operation teams opened fire around in Sakarya Street in Yeni Turan neighbourhood from armoured vehicles. While the inhabitants of the neighbourhood pulled back into houses, many houses in the street were reportedly damaged in the fire.
In the meantime, Turkish state forces continue their attacks in Silvan (Farqin) district of Amed as well. While the resistance of the people led by the youth also continues, helicopters are often carrying out flight at low level over the district. Additionally, sounds of guns are frequently heard from the neighbourhoods.
The journalists covering the attacks of state forces in the district have also been targeted by police forces. Following the detention of reporters for Özgür Tv and DIHA this morning, it has emerged that a detention warrant has been issued for the journalists based in the district on grounds of violating the curfew.
Turkish Nazi state forces know no bounds in the savagery they commit against the Kurdish people whom they terrorize with a “clear instruction” of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu.
A photo from Şırnak shows 24-year-old Hacı Lokman Birlik tied behind an armored police vehicle and dragged on the ground after his execution by special operation teams in Dicle neighborhood of Şırnak late Friday.
Eyewitnesses told that Birlik was first wounded in the armed attack of state forces, upon which special operation members came near him, shot him to death, and stepped on his head as they had a photo taken at the scene. Witnesses said the policemen later dragged Birlik's body on the ground until they took it out of the street where they killed him in Dicle neighborhood.
As the youth's body was later taken to Şırnak State Hospital by the people, hospital staff Menal Geçer was also battered by special operation teams as she brought a stretcher to carry him into the hospital. Geçer was later detained and taken to Şırnak police headquarters.
DEMİRTAŞ: NOBODY SHOULD FORGET ABOUT THIS PHOTO
HDP Co-President Selahattin Demirtaş who also published the photo of savagery on his Twitter account, said that; "Look at this photo very well. It was taken in Şırnak the day before. Nobody should forget about this photo, because we will not." Hmmm.....Just as i warned the moment Turkey agreed to take actively part in the Fight on ISIS, Turkey is using NATO Cover to kill innocent Kurdish civilians. History will judge NATO For it's part in this.
If coalition government formed in Turkey, it is likely to be weak and short lived, expert says. (Taz).
Early parliamentary election in Turkey is quite likely, Paul Levin,
director at Stockholm University Institute for Turkish Studies (SUITS)
told Trend.
Turkey held parliamentary election June 7, involving 20 political
parties. As many as 53,765,231 people took part in the voting. As a
result, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) gathered 40.9
percent of votes, Republican People's Party (CHP) – 25 percent,
Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) – 16.3 percent, Peoples’ Democratic
Party (HDP) – 13.1 percent. Thus, the Justice and Development Party
won’t be able to form a government by its own.
“Right now, there seems to be no possibility for any majority
coalition, so either something has to give, or there will be an early
election after the 45 days allotted for the forming of a government have
expired,” said the expert.
Levin added that all three opposition parties have rejected the
possibility of joining a coalition led by the Justice and Development
Party.
Levin added that even if a coalition government is formed, it is
likely to be a weak government and therefore, early election would
remain a possibility.
If the Justice and Development Party can manage to gain the support
of the pro-Kurdish HDP, they could continue the peace process between
the Turkish government and the Kurdistan Peoples’ Party (PKK), according
to the expert.
If the Justice and Development Party on the other hand turns to the
Nationalist Movement Party for support, the peace process will take a
serious blow from which it may not recover, Levin added.
“But both of these alternatives would require a complete reversal
from the respective party leaderships, so they are far from likely,” the
expert said. Hmmm.......I hate when i'm right. Related: 'Islamist' Turkey - The Day after the elections - Will Erdogan organize new elections next year as promised?
Former head of the OIC Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu was elected to the Parliament of Turkey.(Taz). The former head of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu was elected to the Turkish parliament.
Ihsanoglu ran from the opposition Nationalist Movement Party (MHP).
According to preliminary data Turkey's ruling party won 40.95% of the vote.
Republican People's Party (CHP) won 25.1%, Nationalist Movement Party
(MHP) - 16.8%, and the Democratic People's Party (HDP) - 11.7% of the
vote.
Other political parties as a whole gained 4.5% of votes.
During the parliamentary election held in Turkey in 2011, the ruling
Justice and Development Party gained 46.66 percent of the vote. Some
20.85 percent of the votes went to the Republican People’s Party (CHP),
and 14.29 percent of the votes were gathered by the Nationalist Movement
Party (MHP).
Turkish President Erdoğan’s adviser Binali Yıldırım said that if the ruling AK Party doesn't win a majority in Parliament in the upcoming election on June 7, it will simply establish a minority government and hold another general election within a year.
'If AKP doesn’t win upcoming election, it will hold another election.'
“I don’t see much chance of a coalition,” said Yıldırım speaking to reporters on Friday, “Theoretically, even if such an outcome were to happen, the AK Party would just establish a minority government and another election would be held within a year.” Hmmm......Something tells me all his 'Buddies' ....The Sultan of Qatar and Obama will come to his rescue.Read the full story here.
A senior official from Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) said on Sunday initial parliamentary election results suggested the party may be forced to form a minority government and that an early election could be on the cards.
"We expect a minority government and early election," the senior official told Reuters on condition of anonymity.
With almost 91 percent of ballots counted, the AK Party has won 40.6 percent of the vote.
PS:
If the opposition parties fail to form a coalition government within 45 days, Erdoğan has the constitutional power to hold another election.We may then be faced with the danger of the AKP winning that election big by claiming that the opposition parties have proven unable to govern. Source.
The Turks entered WW1 with the intention of clearing Anatolia of Christians, they didn't react to an Armenian revolt. By Kyle W. Orton.
The controversy over the 1915-17 massacres of Armenian Christians by the Ottoman Empire is whether these acts constitute genocide. Those who say they don’t are not the equivalent of Holocaust-deniers in that while some minimize the figures of the slain, they do not deny that the massacres happened; what they deny is that the massacres reach the legal definition of genocide. Their case is based on three interlinked arguments:
Unlike the Nazi Holocaust when a defenceless population was murdered only for its identity, the Armenians were engaged in a massive armed revolt, and this is why the Ottoman government decided to deport them.
The intent of the Ottomans was not massacre but the removal of the Armenians, who had sided with one foreign invading power (Russia) and who were showing signs of collaborating with another (Britain), from the militarily sensitive areas as Turkey suffered a two-front invasion in early 1915.
While terrible massacres, plus starvation and the cold, took maybe a million lives during the deportations, when the Armenians reached their destinations in Syria and Iraq, which were also part of the Ottoman Empire, they were well-treated and allowed to rebuild their lives, which would not have been the case had the Ottomans intended their destruction.
Taner Akcam’s A Shameful Act: The Armenian Genocide and the Question of Turkish Responsibility presents evidence to undermine every one of these arguments.
The Armenian genocide is marked on April 24, the day in 1915 several Armenian notables in Istanbul were arrested. This date fits rather well with the Turkish narrative.
This timeline, however, misses several key events which show that the deportations were not a reactive policy but a key strategic intention of the Ottomans in entering the Great War—and Istanbul did deliberately enter the war, despite much myth-making to this day that Turkey was forced into it.
The CUP sought the restoration of Ottoman glory, a key component of which was the removal of the Christians from Anatolia, and thought this could be had by war.
The cancellation of the Treaty of Yenikoy, signed on February 8, 1914, under Russian pressure, which called for administrative reforms, namely autonomy, for the Ottoman Christians, and called for an international intervention if the reforms were not implemented, was one of the first acts after the Ottoman declaration of war. With the Armenian reform agreement dead, the legal basis for international interference in the Ottoman realm went with it.
Later Istanbul would also cancel the 1878 Berlin Treaty—the other instrument that dealt with the Armenian Question—and also withdrew from the 1856 Paris Treaty, which ended the Crimean War and inducted the Ottoman Empire into the “family of Europe,” the realm where international law applied, and the London Declaration of 1871. The cancellation of these three treaties freed the Ottomans from all international legal restraints on their behaviour and all legal right for other States to intervene in their internal affairs.
The massacres had stopped by the summer of 1917, though the destruction of Armenian property had not.
There is a significant argument over how many Armenians there were in pre-war Turkey—the Armenian Church says 2.1 million; the Turks say 1.3 million. What is known for sure is that 600,000 Armenians were alive after 1918—thus 600,000 to 1.5 million Armenians were killed, with 150,000-to-200,000 of them having survived the deportations. The number of Armenian women and children taken into servitude or converted within Muslim families is impossible to estimate. Hmmmm.....What is clear is 1. It was carefully & Methodically planned; 2. It were crimes against Humanity, perpetrated by the Ottomans. Read the full story here.
Just like Iran has been doing for years, political Islamists -- who finally seized power in the Turkish government significantly eroding constitutional checks and balances, causing the disintegration of the rule of law and curbing parliamentary democracy -- have done a great disservice to the Palestinian people by exploiting their plight for domestic and regional ambitions.
The chief architect of Turkey's policy in the last decade in regards to Palestine has been Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu, who had served as foreign minister and chief foreign policy advisor to then prime minister and now President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Davutoğlu is a committed ideologue and a die-hard Islamist whose utopian perspective orbits around the supremacy of a Muslim Brotherhood-style international network of Islamists.
With the blessings of his boss, Davutoğlu has worked hard in the case of Palestine to reclaim ground among radical voices that exploit public sensitivities to long-running injustices and the occupation Palestinian people have been suffering at the hands of Israeli oppression.
In the end, the Turkish role that was long-cherished as a positive one and that came to be appreciated and recognized by Turkey's partners and allies including the transatlantic alliance, was eventually transformed into a negative one under the Davutoğlu-Erdoğan stewardship. Turkish Islamists' latent hostility towards President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah Movement and keen interest in exploiting public frustration over the lack of political progress and lingering humiliation of the Palestinian people, has now stirred a backlash against Turkey.
Gaza-ruler Hamas is obviously favored by the Islamist leaders as Hamas' political leader Khaled Meshaal frequently attends private dinners at Erdoğan's house, often shows up in Ankara unannounced and has been an enthusiastic campaigner at Davutoğlu's public rallies in Turkey to garner support for the Islamists.
This obscured and short-sighted policy of favoring Hamas by Islamists -- who wanted nothing but to make quick cash on the back of Palestinians -- is threatening Turkey's long-term interests in a way no other government in Turkey has dared to do.
Ankara is now seen as interventionist in Arab affairs at the expense of existing regimes, and a bully that loves to show off and boasts a condescending attitude when it comes to resolving the intricate and entrenched problems of Arabs in general and Palestine in particular.
Let me give you several examples I have picked up from my confidential sources to explain how Davutoğlu plotted to exploit Palestine for his own ambitions. Hmmm.....While making loads of money trading with Israel. Read the full story here.
'Advanced Islamist Democracy' 101 - If AKP doesn't win June election, it will hold another election. (Bugun).
Turkish President Erdoğan’s adviser Binali Yıldırım said that if the ruling AK Party doesn't win a majority in Parliament in the upcoming election on June 7, it will simply establish a minority government and hold another general election within a year.
If AKP doesn’t win upcoming election, it will hold another election
Ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) deputy and former Minister of Transport, Maritime and Communication Binali Yıldırım, currently working as adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, has announced that Turkey will simply hold another election if the AK Party doesn't win a majority in the upcoming elections on June 7.
“I don’t see much chance of a coalition,” said Yıldırım speaking to reporters on Friday, “Theoretically, even if such an outcome were to happen, the AK Party would just establish a minority government and another election would be held within a year.”
He added that such a scenario was unlikely as Turkish citizens would probably continue voting for the AK Party for the sake of stability and the continuation of trust.
Latest opinion polls show that Turks are increasingly getting disillusioned with the ruling party.
The April opinion poll released by Gezici Research last week shows that only 38.1 percent of respondents said they’d vote for the AK Party if they voted right now, a drop from their 39.1 percent in Gezici’s February opinion poll and a huge projected decline from the party’s 49.83 percent victory in the last general elections in 2011.
Meanwhile the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) has climbed to 28.5 percent from its 25.98 percent in the 2011 election while the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) to 18 percent from its 13.01 percent. The People’s Democratic Party (HDP) is projected to reach 11 percent, putting it over the 10 percent vote threshold needed for it to enter the assembly. The current HDP lawmakers had run as independents in the 2011 general elections, receiving about 6.57 percent of the vote.
According to simulations of parliamentary seat distribution based on these numbers, between such a drop in AK Party votes and the HDP crossing the election threshold, the number of seats won by the ruling party would be significantly lower than the 276 deputies needed to form a single-party government in Turkey’s 550-seat parliament. Hmmmm.........Dictatorship 101.
As Pres Obama would say 'You (Turks) did not build that!'
'Islamist' Turkey - 12Th century Hagia Sophia church in Enez to be 'renovated' in to mosque. (HD).
A ruined Hagia Sophia dating back to the 12th century in the western border province of Edirne will be renovated as a mosque, despite former statements made about the possibility of restoring it as a museum.
Following the conversion of two Hagia Sophia into museums, which were initially built as churches and then turned into mosques and, subsequently, museums, the third Hagia Sophia in Edirne’s Enez district will be reconverted into a mosque, according to Foundations General Director Adnan Ertem, despite previous debates on turning it into a museum after reconstruction.
Speaking to state-run Anadolu Agency, Ertem said the Edirne Culture Assets Protection Regional Board approved the reconstruction project of the structure, which he called a “mosque” during the interview.
Ertem said the project would start as soon as possible, adding that the Hagia Sophia has been taken into the Foundations General Directorate’s investment program.
Explaining why it should be re-opened as a mosque, Erdem said the building was a “sanctuary that was consecrated as a mosque.”
“It is a foundation that can be put into service in line with its foundational charter. Thus its function will be preserved,” said Ertem.
Enez’s Hagia Sophia is located inside the ancient city of Ainos and although there are no records, it is thought to date back to the 12th century. It is located along the border with Greece and stationed on top of a hill seen from all around.
The district governor of Enez, Fatih Baysal, said in 2012 the usage of the structure as a mosque or not was a matter to be decided after the renovation.
“But even if it is used as a museum or a mosque, this place really needs to be [opened],” said Baysal.
Enez Mayor Abdullah Bostancı said the structure would have similar properties to the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul.
The main Hagia Sophia, which has been a museum since 1935, was built in the fourth century and converted into a mosque, when Mehmet the Conqueror took Istanbul in 1453.
Hagia Sophia of Enez
In Enez, on the Gulf of Saros near the Greek border, there are the ruins of the sea facing, sixth century Hagia Sophia church, which was used as a mosque until the mid-1960s. Although the exact construction date of the Hagia Sophia of Enez, also known as Fatih Mosque, is unknown, it is considered to be representative of mid-Byzantine architecture styles.
The church, which was converted into a mosque after the 1456 capture of Enez by Sultan Mehmet II is located at the highest point of the Enez castle. The Hagia Sophia of Enez also offers a great view of Enez Lakes, Maritsa River and Marmara Sea. Hmmmm....The 'Islamist' leadership of Turkey thinks we are idiots, it's pretty obvious the real 'target' is the Istanbul Haga Sophia.
More on this unique Byzantium 12Th century church can be read here. (See Below).
Muslim Brotherhood 'Godfather' Qaradawi Joins US MB Supporting 'Islamist' Turkey On 100th Anniversary Of Armenian Genocide. (GMBR).
Turkish media is reporting that Global
Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi has joined the US Muslim
Brotherhood in declaring his support for Turkey on the occasion of
the 100th anniversary of the genocide of Armenians at the hands of the
Turks during World War I. According a Daily Sabah report:
April 28, 2015 Prominent Muslim scholar
Youssef al-Qaradawi has declared support for Turkey against “vicious
claims” related to the events of 1915.
“There is an increasingly vicious
campaign by some countries to pressure Turkey to take responsibility for
the alleged Armenian genocide in 1915,” al-Qaradawi, the Qatar-based
chief of the International Union for Muslim Scholars, said in a
statement on Monday.
“Attempts to distort history by
exaggerating the number of Armenians killed in the 1915 incidents while
downplaying the Ottoman fatalities will not bring Turkey’s supporters to
succumb to these campaigns,” he said.
“History has not forgotten the victims
of the Crusades, in which European armies committed the most brutal
killings in Jerusalem and the Levant.” Read the rest here.
Armenian Church launching lawsuit in Turkey to reclaim stolen church/lands. (Anca).
WHAT: Press conference announcing lawsuit filed in the Turkish Constitutional Court on April 28th calling for the return of a historical Christian Armenian church and monastery.
WHERE/WHEN:
Wednesday, April 29, 2015, 1:00 pm - Press Conference
National Press Club, Lisagor Room
529 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20045
WHO:
-- Archbishop Oshagan Choloyan, Prelate of the Armenian Apostolic Church of the Eastern United States
-- Payam Akhavan, former UN prosecutor at The Hague and lead international counsel in this case
-- Cem Sofuogleu, Turkish human rights lawyer and local counsel in this case
-- Teny Pirri-Simonian, Senior Advisor to the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia
-- Aram Hamparian, Executive Director of the Armenian National Committee of America
On Tuesday April 28th, the Catholicosate of the Great House of Cilicia filed a lawsuit in the Turkish Constitutional Court to regain ownership of the historic headquarters of the Church, which includes the Catholicosate, the monastery and cathedral of St. Sophia, a major Armenian Christian holy site located in the Sis (currently Kozan), in south-central Turkey. This site was confiscated by the Turkish Government following the Genocide of 1915 in which an estimated 1.5 million Armenians were killed or deported by the Ottoman Empire.
This lawsuit reflects the determination of Armenians worldwide, on the Centenary of the Genocide, to reclaim their sacred religious property and Christian heritage in lands where they lived peacefully for centuries.
The Catholicosate which is the administrative center of the church, was moved from Armenia to Cilicia in the 10th century, and after changing a few locations it was finally established in Sis in the year 1295, where it remained until 1921. Under the Ottoman Empire, the Catholicosate of Cilicia was recognized as an independent church. During the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923, the Armenian population of Sis was massacred and deported, and its Christian holy sites were pillaged and confiscated. More here.
In 301 A.D., Armenia became the first nation to adopt Christianity as its state religion. Armenians have had a long historical presence in what is present-day Turkey.
According to Payam Akhavan, a former UN prosecutor and lead international counsel in this legal action, the return of the historical Seat of the Catholicosate of Cilicia “is a litmus test for the Turkish Government’s respect for the human rights of its Christian minorities, their freedom of worship in a culture of tolerance and dignity.
This is a unique opportunity to do justice, to help heal the wounds of the past, to move towards Turkish-Armenian reconciliation, a better future for both nations.”
ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian noted that "The restoration of the Catholicosate would represent an act of justice, a first step toward the legal return of the Armenian Church and its faithful to their lawful place in their rightful homeland, and a meaningful milestone in the Armenian nation's journey toward a just resolution of the Armenian Genocide."
Russia's Armenian Genocide statement might endanger Turkish Stream. (Taz).
Despite the fact that the Turkish authorities urged for justice
regarding the 1915 events, such countries as Russia and France blindly
chose to hold Armenia’s side.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, commenting on the visit of
President Vladimir Putin to Yerevan, said that “each country makes
decisions on its own, and Russia, in turn, made this decision a long
time ago.” This justification could have calmed Ankara down, if not for
Putin's words that the 1915 events are the so-called Armenian genocide.
Ankara expressed serious resentment.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, commenting on the visit of heads
of Russia and France to Yerevan in order to participate in activities
in connection with the “centennial” of the so-called Armenian genocide,
said that this decision casts doubts on the neutrality of the OSCE Minsk
Group.
It is impossible not to agree with it, despite the fact that the Russian
side said that Putin's visit to Yerevan would not affect relations with
Ankara.
"It is quite natural that the president was with other counterparts in
Yerevan,” spokesman for the Russian president Dmitry Peskov said. “It is
very important to thoroughly examine President Putin’s speech. It is
also very important not to forget that at the same time, Turkey is our
strategic partner. We have diversified relations. We believe that the
prospects for the development of our relations are wide."
This will not affect the construction of the Akkuyu nuclear power plant,
however one must not forget that there is also the Turkish Stream
project which Russia greatly needs.
Turkey has already made a statement that it will reconsider cooperation
with a number of countries after April 24 that have lost neutrality on
the issue related to the events of 1915.
Of course, along with Europe, Russia is also on the "black list" of
Ankara. It is not ruled out that after President Putin’s visit to
Yerevan and his statements about the events of 1915, Ankara will
reconsider the issue of the Turkish Stream construction.
The issue of implementation of Turkish Stream project causes controversy
in Turkey. The main reason is Russia’s demand from Turkey to make
additional concessions. Media hasn’t specified what kind of concession
it is, but this led to refusal of Turkey’s BOTAS company from signing an
agreement on discount for Russian gas delivered to Turkey.
Although the sides were expected to sign the discount agreement in March
2015, Turkey hasn’t signed it so far. Another disputed issue is that
Russia has completely isolated Turkey’s BOTAS company from the
construction of the Turkish Stream, which doesn’t meet Ankara’s
interests.
All these facts suggest that the visit of Russian president to Armenia
and his remarks about the “Armenian genocide” first of all put Russia’s
energy interests under threat. Turkish authorities will unlikely miss
the chance to use this for their purposes.
What the Vatican archives reveal about the Armenian Genocide. (VaticanRadio).[GoogleTranslate].
This is probably one of the darkest pages of the twentieth century that the Armenians call Medz Yeghern "Grand Mal", namely the massacres were victims almost a million and a half of their under the Ottoman Empire between 1915 and 1917.
And that's branded with the Armenians commemorate the centenary of Friday these tragic events, which constitute for them a "genocide." A term that Turkey rejects categorically denying any intention of systematic extermination of the Armenians, preferring instead to speak of "civil war".
At the Vatican, a Mass presided by Pope Francis, was celebrated on April 12 in memory of the victims of this "crazy and terrible extermination" ... The Holy See and Pope Benedict XV, at the time, were among alone have taken the measure of current events, and engaged fully on the diplomatic and humanitarian level, in favor of the Armenians, regardless of their religious sensibilities. This is revealed precious Vatican archives, studied and published recently by Father George Ruyssen, Belgian Jesuit , professor at the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome.
What Demonstrate these archives? In What are they exceptional? It is that they clearly show that the Vatican is driven by interests that are not economic and geopolitical interests that were indeed the interests of other powers which also relate the events of the genocide but from another point of view while the Vatican, the Church is essentially driven by an interest, I would say, spiritual and also humanitarian and therefore not by economic, geopolitical or military interests, if you want.
These archives therefore attest that the Holy See was informed about current events at the time and even better, he tried to intervene in favor of the Armenians. In what way?
What happened April 24, 1915? It is a raid, deportation of 300 to 400 Armenians from the capital, so of Constantinople and Istanbul were arrested and deported to the interior of the Ottoman Empire.
Now at that time, the same day, the Apostolic Delegate, Archbishop Angelo Maria Dolci was informed of these events since two days later, on April 24 (it's a letter of April 27 if I am not mistaken) it sends a report to the Vatican in relating this event, this raid of 300-400 deported Armenians within the Ottoman Empire. Then, gradually, the apostolic delegate comes to collect other information.
It will be informed by the Armenian bishops themselves but also by the Franciscan missionaries, Dominicans and Jesuits who were also present in the Ottoman Empire.
He'll be informed, it will collect reports of these people who are eye witnesses to what is happening today. For example, in Mardin, there occurred this or Trebizond, yesterday there was a deportation. So these people, these monks will write him reports he will know the Vatican. What the Vatican did? Well, the Pope has written twice to the Ottoman Sultan, Mohammed V, who was Sultan at that time to stop the killings, saying, " Well, I am aware of what is happening in the empire and I beg you to stop these killings . " So the first letter of Pope Benedict XV was dated September 10, 1915.
So if I may, I can give a piece of this letter I have here before me
" Majesty, while sorrow for the horrors of the great struggle in which, with the great nations of Europe, is hired the powerful empire of your majesty (the Ottoman Empire) we tear the soul very painful groans echo of an entire people, which in the broad areas of the Ottoman, is subjected to unspeakable suffering arrivals up us. The Armenian nation has seen many of his son sent to their deaths, others many imprisoned or exiled including several clerics and even some bishops. And now it is referred that entire populations of villages and towns are forced to abandon their homes to move in the middle of the Great Plains and suffering in distant places or concentration in addition to moral suffering, they to endure the privations of abject poverty and even tortures of hunger. We believe, Sire, that such excesses take place against the will of the government of your majesty . " There was another letter since the killings will continue.
Following the Pope's letter, the massacres slowdown a little. Things will calm down a little but not much order to stop the killings. The massacres will continue and this is what will result in a second letter of Pope Benedict XV in the same sultan, the sultan Mohammed V, which is dated 12 March 1918.
And there is a letter that, in my opinion, unknown (I do not know her at all), it's a letter that the Pope sent three days before the end of the First World War, that is to say on 8 November 1918, three days before the armistice of 11 November. He sent a letter to President Wilson, the US president when the Pope advocates the independence of Armenia.
The Pope, in a note dated 1 August 1917, refers to this note in his letter. It was a note in favor of peace. Benedict XV intervenes several times during the first World War in favor of peace.
The note of 1 August 1917 mentions various points: the exchange of prisoners of war, etc. But one of the points is the independence of Armenia, is the creation of an independent Armenia. That will be the note of peace from 1 August 1917 will directly inspire the 14 points of President Wilson. He will present after the 1st World War, when the peace conference, the 14 points that are inspired by the note of peace of Pope Benedict XV.
The Holy See has of course worked, you've discussed at length, on the diplomatic front. Is that one can say that he intervened at other levels as well?
On a humanitarian level. The effort of the Holy See is not just a political but also diplomatic effort at the humanitarian level.
Remember that during the First World War, UNICEF, the High Commissioner for Refugees, the international organizations did not exist at the time. During the First World War, what was? The Red Cross and then, the Catholic Church, also Protestants.
The Catholic Church and the Pope is invested in humanitarian terms by sending money to refugees, survivors, orphans. And unfortunately it is a little known point.
By initiative of the apostolic delegate, Archbishop Angelo Maria Dolci (his nickname is the angel of the Armenians), the Pope founded a "Benedict XV" orphanage for Armenian orphans in Constantinople.
And then came those orphans in Italy. And where did they come to Italy? They were housed in the papal palace in Castel Gandolfo. These orphans stayed there about a year. They were hosted by the Pope himself before being transferred to Turin.
A hundred years later, so today, the time is just as tragic. Persecution against Christians are increasingly violent and in several countries: Nigeria, Kenya, Syria, Iraq, etc. The Pope, before these tragedies denounced the indifference of some and even their silence complicit in the atrocities we suffer today.
In your opinion, in what spirit should be approached this centenary in light of what is happening today and what lesson can we and should we draw?
Unfortunately, things are repeated. What we read in the reports sent by the Apostolic Delegate in the reports there a hundred years, one could read today by putting in place of Armenian place names from Nigeria, Kenya, the Syria, Iraq.
Today we can read exactly the same things that happened a hundred years ago. And still, indifference is the same as a hundred years ago. The lesson drawn in, it is this indifference that the Pope, rightly hammered: indifference, apathy powers.
Turkish Nat Def minister: France, UK and Russia ‘responsible for all evil in world’. (Bugun).
Turkey’s Minister of National Defense İsmet Yılmaz says that it was France, Britain and Russia who armed and provoked the Armenians during World War I and that “these three countries have committed every form of evil against all other nations.”
Criticizing the European Parliament and several countries’ acceptance of the term “genocide” for the mass killings of Armenians in 1915, Defense Minister Yılmaz said, “Since we’re the rightful owners of this state, we never brought up the cruelty, injustice, deportations and massacres that were inflicted on us. And so, as we refrained from voicing our own pain, others started putting their pain before ours.”
Defense Minister Yılmaz said on Saturday that while Turkish men were off fighting in the fronts of World War I, the Great Powers wanted to build an Armenian state on Turkish soil and so armed Armenian rebels, and that their deportation to Syria was a precaution to protect the people of Anatolia.
“If there is anyone responsible [for the events of 1915] it is those who armed the Armenian terrorists: France, Britain and Russia,” he said, “It is these three countries that have committed every form of evil against all other nations.”
He added that those three countries exposed the “Crusader mindset that rested in the back of their minds” and called on the Turkish nations to unite in solidarity and undermine their "plans and calculations."Hmmmm......And the Future heir of the British throne, head of the English Church go's to the event listening how Jesus is just a mere Prophet, Guess the future of the English Church is pretty bleak..... I wonder what Churchill would have said and Done.
Members of Congress Disappointed With Obama's cowardliness Reluctance to Call 1915 Events Genocide. (AINA).
WASHINGTON -- Lawmakers on Wednesday evening honored lives lost during
the Armenian genocide 100 years ago -- and pressed the global community
to recognize what happened, urging President Barack Obama to lead on the
issue.
"We must speak the truth and not dishonor those who
died," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi. "We will continue to
insist on the truth until it is widely accepted and apologized for."
White
House officials this week said Obama would not refer to the 1915 events
as genocide, despite the fact that he did call it that when he was a
senator.
"Genocide is genocide. That is plain and simple and
cannot be called anything else. Just last week Pope Francis, in a
historic acknowledgement, tells us that he knows it. He called the
events from 100 years ago the first genocide of the century. And he is
right," said Democrat Sen. Robert Menendez of New Jersey.
Armenians
accuse Turkey, heirs of the Ottoman Empire, of massacring 1.5 million
Armenians in 1915. Other groups, like the Greeks and Assyrians, also say
their ancestors died during the genocide.
Turks claim that events in the early 20th century claimed the lives of both Armenians and Turks during the First World War.
In
2008, Barack Obama, then a senator and presidential candidate, said:
"The Armenian Genocide is not an allegation, a personal opinion, or a
point of view, but rather a widely documented fact supported by an
overwhelming body of historical evidence. The facts are undeniable."
Lawmakers expressed their frustration with the president's decision.
"They
try, but they'll not put us down. I promise you that," said Republican
Rep. Gus Bilirakis of Florida. "Facts are stubborn things."Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman of California agreed.
"What
kind of world power can be cowed into denying [the genocide]?" he said.
"Genocide denial is the final act of a genocide. First a people is
destroyed, and then the perpetrators try to destroy the memory of the
destruction. But genocide denial is also the first step in the next
genocide."
A statue in memory of the genocide will be unveiled on
Friday in Las Vegas's Sunset Park, according to Nevada Rep. Dina Titus, a
Democrat.
"I was very disappointed that our own president didn't
live up to his promise," she said. Titus referred to the Turkish state
as the "enemy."
"We need the facts to be known, that 1.5 million
Armenians died, not by accident, but by design," said Rep. Judy Chu,
Democrat of California. "We threaten our future on denial, explaining
the genocide away, attributing it just to the cost of war makes it
easier the next time a people is singled-out or targeted for
extinction."
Chu mentioned the unveiling of an Armenian genocide
statue last week in Pasadena. The structure, fashioned like a tripod,
resembles the structure used by Ottomans to hang Armenians, according to
Chu. In a year's time, 1.5 million drops of water, or teardrops, are
expected to fall from the top of the structure.
Attendee Simon
Shahinian, an intern in Maryland Democratic Rep. Chris Van Hollen's
office, said that Turkey would most likely not recognize the genocide
anytime soon.
"[Recognition is] something I really want to see
happen," Shahinian said. "And it's frustrating that the U.S. hasn't
recognized it."
More than 20 countries and 40 U.S. states recognize the Armenian genocide. Hmmmm........Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power. - Abraham Lincoln
If Turkey denies the Armenian genocide of 1915, it is (also) to hide the massacres of 1895. (DI). [Googletranslate].
The Armenian Genocide was the first genocide of the 20th century. In 1895, Muslims made a real massacre.
"For centuries, the Turks simply lived like parasites on the backs of the people busy and industrious. They imposed their economic extinction, stole their most beautiful girls to take them by force in their harems, took Christian male infants by hundreds of miles to make the Muslim soldiers. I do not intend to describe the terrible vassalage and oppression that lasted five centuries. My goal is simply to emphasize this innate attitude towards the Muslim Turkish people who are not of their own race and religion, that they are not human beings but merely slaves allowed to live when they are of interest to their masters, or can be destroyed without mercy when they ceased to be useful.This attitude is reinforced by a total disregard for human life and an intense pleasure in inflicting physical pain, which is not unusual among primitive peoples. "- ( Henry Morgenthau , US Ambassador to Constantinople from 1913 to 1916)
In all, two million Armenians were either displaced from their ancestral lands, or eliminated, much like the Europeans want this to happen to the Jews in Palestine today.
For this, the Ottoman Turkish Muslims, who do not tolerate Christians - nothing is new - organized genocide to rid the Armenian and Greek. Thus 1.5 million people lost their lives between 1915 and 23, during and after the First World War.
This is the genocide which the Turks now deny the existence (they have not always denied).
But before that, between 1894 and 1896, about 300 000 to 400 000 inhabitants of Armenian Christian villages were massacred in pogroms organized by special regiments of the Sultan Abdul-Hamid II , also known as the "Red Sultan" for the massacres he committed against the Ottoman Armenian population.
The worst of these massacres took place in 1895
300,000 civilians, mainly men, were savagely, Islamically slaughtered. It must be said that Armenian Christians were far more educated, wealthier inhabitants of the old Turkish Empire, but also already the so-called - the infidels, non believers in Islam.
The massacres were -officially destined for undermining the Armenian nationalist sentiment and frighten the Armenians. Sultan Abdul-Hamid II was frightened by the liveliness of the activity of Armenian political groups, and wanted to curb their growth before they acquire greater influence by spreading ideas about civil rights and autonomy. However, according to historians, he was not considering as his successors, the Young Turks, the Armenians to disappear as a people.
The testimony of Vilbert, Shipley and Prjevalsky, representatives of France, Britain and Russia, totally contradicts the thesis of non genocidal massacre
"We, gentlemen Vilbert, Shipley and Prjevalsky, representatives of France, Britain and Russia have become convinced, and arrived at the conclusion in functions of the evidence before us, the Armenians were massacred without age or sex, and that, in fact, for a period of three weeks between August 12 and September 4, it is no exaggeration to say that the Armenians were absolutely hunted like wild beasts, were killed where they were found, and if the killing was not more important it is, I think, only to the extent of the mountains of this region, which has allowed people to spread and s escape more easily.
In fact, and speaking with a full sense of responsibility, I am forced to admit that was imposed on me the conviction that it was not so much the capture of the Murad agitator, or suppression of a pseudo -revolt, who were wanted by the Turkish authorities but the outright extermination of Ghelieguzan and Talori "(in Armenian massacres in which the sword of Mohammed and Armenian atrocities )"
US President Grover Cleveland wrote, December 2, 1895 in his message to Congress:
"Some events in Turkey have continued to cause concern. Reports of massacres of Christians in Armenia, and development, there and in other regions, in the spirit of a fanatical hostility against the Christian influence, causes a natural fear (since dubbed Islamophobia) for safety men and women devotees, belonging to American missionary societies abroad, and who reside in Turkey under the guarantee of law and practice for the legitimate practice of their educational and religious mission. "
When in 1896 the US threatened the Sultan Abdul Hamid II to cease the "persecution" of Armenians, the latter, in its reply, did as his successor Erdogan today: he denied any persecution of Armenians, but declared that the Ottoman Empire had received thousands of Muslim refugees who fled the oppression of Christian Bulgaria and Russia.
'Angry Man of Europe' Turkey: "Russia knows genocide well, we won't forgive Germany and France" (HD).
Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Yalcin Akdogan Friday has called on
Vladimir Putin to condemn killings in Syria after Vladimir Putin
described the 1915 events as "genocide", Anadolu agency reported.
Putin used the word "genocide" to qualify what happened to Armenians
during the First World War in a statement released on the Kremlin's
website Thursday.
“April 24, 1915, is a mournful date, related to one of the most
horrendous and dramatic events in human history, the genocide of the
Armenian people,” Putin said in a letter called "World Without
Genocide."
"Hundreds of thousands of people were killed in Syria. I wish Putin
could have made a statement about it and condemned (Bashar Al-) Assad
and shared these pains," Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Yalcin Akdogan
said Friday in response to Putin’s statement.
Davutoglu also reacted to Putin's statement. "Any position that
disturbs and insults our history, abuses our trust," he said on Friday.
Turkey said on April 24 that it rejected and condemned Russian President Vladimir Putin calling the 1915 mass killings of Ottoman Armenians a "genocide."
"Taking into account the mass atrocities and exiles in Caucasus, in the Central Asia and Eastern Europe committed by Russia for a century; collective punishment methods such as Holodomor as well as inhumane practices especially against Turkish and Muslim people in Russia’s own history, we consider that Russia is best-suited to know what exactly “genocide” and its legal dimension are," a foreign ministry statement said.
Turkey also condemned Duma's April 24 resolution that described the 1915 events as "genocide."
"The only thing that Russia can do in this issue is to leave its biased attitude aside and encourage Armenia and the Armenians to respond positively to the calls of Turkey for peace and friendship," the statement added.
FRANCE:
Turkey condemned France's "unjust and partial attitude" to the deaths of Armenians in 1915 late on April 24.
"French President Francois Hollande participated, as he had announced long time ago, at the ceremony held in Yerevan on 24 April, 2015, which instead of being a commemoration for the losses incurred in the past, turned out to be an occasion to slander Turkish identity, history and society," the Foreign Ministry said in a separate statement.
The statement added that Hollande had "regrettably reiterated his support to the Armenian nationalist narrative."
Russian President Vladimir Putin also attended the events in the Armenian capital held to mark the 100th anniversary of the 1915 incidents, which heard Hollande urge Turkey to end its refusal to recognize the deaths as "genocide."
"It would have been expected from President Hollande that during these ceremonies he would acknowledge that, regardless of religion or ethnicity, all Ottoman citizens endured tragic sufferings during the process of the collapse of the Ottoman Empire," the statement added.
"Such an approach, which does not discriminate between the sufferings of those who belong to different religions, would have undoubtedly been seen as a positive and embracing attitude by the 600,000 Turks living in France."
France "unfortunately preferred to continue its discriminatory approach and Turkey unequivocally rejects and condemns France's unjust and partial attitude."
GERMANY:
The ministry also criticized German President Joachim Gauck on April 24 after he referred to the 1915 incidents as "genocide."
The response from the ministry came one a day after Gauck referred to the tragedy of a century ago as a "genocide" in remarks he made at a memorial service at the historical Berlin Cathedral.
The ministry said in a statement his comments were "baseless allegations directed towards Turkish identity, history and society."
It added: "Contrary to law and historical facts, President Gauck has not the right to attribute on the Turkish people a crime which they have not committed."
"It is expected from the authorities who represent social unity, integrity and harmony, to take the sensitivities of all the members of the society into consideration and express a more embracing approach," it read.
The statement went on: "In this sense, it is astonishing that President Gauck has also disregarded the opinions of hundreds of thousands of Turkish-German citizens whom he also represents."
It sait the “Turkish nation will not forget and forgive President Gauck's statements." Read the full story here.
.jpg)
