Monday 6 September 2010

Armenian News

RFE/RL Report
Another Deadly Firefight Reported In Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh -- Karabakh Armenian soldiers hold military exercises.
01.09.2010
Lusine Musayelian

At least two Azerbaijani soldiers have been killed in renewed fighting
with Armenian forces in Nagorno-Karabakh, it emerged on Wednesday.

The deadly clash reportedly occurred on Tuesday in a northern section of
the main Armenian-Azerbaijani `line of contact' that recently saw the
worst ceasefire violation in the Karabakh conflict zone in over two
years.

Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry said an Armenian `sabotage group' attacked
its troops stationed in the area late in the afternoon and was pushed
back by them. A ministry statement cited by Azerbaijani media said two
Azerbaijani and three Armenian soldiers died in the firefight.

Military officials in Armenia and Karabakh blamed the Azerbaijani army
for the incident and insisted that there were no fatalities among
Karabakh Armenian forces. `The opposite happened. As always, they are
spreading false reports,' Armenia's Defense Minister Seyran Ohanian told
journalists in Yerevan on Wednesday.

`Azerbaijan has again shown its face,' said Ohanian. `After meeting with
a worthy response from our frontline troops, [Azerbaijani troops] fled
the battlefield and suffered casualties.'

Karabakh's Defense Army, meanwhile, claimed that Azerbaijani forces
suffered seven casualties in a failed `sabotage attack' on its positions
in the disputed territory's northern Martakert district. The army
spokesman, Senor Hasratian, told RFE/RL's Armenian service that the
incident occurred early in the morning.

According to Hasratian, only one Karabakh Armenian soldier, identified
as Rudik Manaserian, was wounded in the skirmish. Doctors at a military
hospital in the Karabakh capital Stepanakert told RFE/RL on Wednesday
that the 19-year-old conscript has undergone surgery and is now in a
`satisfactory' condition.

The same section of the frontline was already the scene of deadly
fighting between the warring sides as recently as on June 18-19. It left
one Azerbaijani and four Armenian troops dead and raised more fears of
another Armenian-Azerbaijani war.

Each party blamed the other for that firefight, which was took place the
day after the presidents of Armenia and Azerbaijan met in Saint
Petersburg for fresh talks hosted by their Russian counterpart, Dmitry
Medvedev. The Armenian side accused Baku of deliberately provoking the
incident to torpedo the peace process spearheaded by the United States,
Russia and France.

It pointed to the fact that the Azerbaijani soldier, Mubariz Ibrahimov,
was shot dead in Armenian-controlled territory. His body has still not
been handed over to the Azerbaijani side.

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev bestowed the posthumous title of
`national hero' on Ibrahimov in late July. Aliyev also ordered his
government to name a school and a street after the dead soldier.


Armenian Radio
No Cross for Holy Cross

YEREVAN (ArmRadio)—Turkish authorities on Friday announced that
they will not be installing a cross on the dome of the recently renovated
Holy Cross church on the island of Akhtamar.

Located in the Southeastern province of Van, the Holy Cross Church
was reopened and converted into a museum by local authorities following
renovations. The move caused an outcry among Armenians in Turkey
and abroad, who condemned the government’s defilement of the holy
site. After much local and international pressure, the Turkish government
ostensibly agreed to install a cross on the church in time for its first liturgy
and allow limited services to be held.
But the government is now backing down on
its promise, according to the editor of the Istanbul-based Agos Daily,
Sarkis Seropyan. “The cross had to be installed a few days before the
liturgy. Everything was ready and the cross was already brought to Van.
However they say they are not going to put the cross because of technical
reasons,” Seropyan told ArmRadio.

According to Archbishop Aram Ateshyan, the Deputy Patriarch of
Constantinople, the governor of Van had said that installing the cross,
weighing at 200 kg, would require a special tower that would not be
available until after the liturgy. Ateshyan said the governor said the cross
would be “shown to everybody on September 19 and fixed on the dome
after the liturgy.”

Seropyan said the Armenian community of Turkey will still attend the
church service, despite the government’s roundabout over the cross.
“For me the most important thing is that the church of Akhtamar was
reconstructed,” Seropyan said. “The Armenian community is going to
participate in the liturgy in any case to show that it does not refuse to
use its own holy places.”

According Seropyan, a delegation of clergy from the Mother See of Holy
Etchmiadzin will arrive in Van a day before the liturgy to bless and
decorate the church.

Earlier this week, the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia, Aram I, said he
would not send a delegation to attend the September 19 church service,
arguing that the restoration of the church and its transformation into a
museum are “an attempt to convince the European Union and UNESCO
that Turkey safeguards the cultural heritage of its occupied lands.” He
further condemned the act as “an attempt to obscure its consistent policy
of denying the Armenian Genocide and the rights of its survivors.”


asbarez.com
CNN International to feature Armenia's Tatev revival project

Story focuses on world’s longest aerial tramway set to open Oct 16 in
Southern Armenia

CNN International will feature this weekend the story of a groundbreaking
effort underway in Armenia that will bring to life its greatest ancient
monastery and spur the revival of tourism and development throughout the
country.

The segment, produced by Yerkir Media for broadcast on CNN, will present
the massive $50-Million Tatev Revival Project to the international arena and
share with viewers worldwide the project’s ambitious vision to construct the
world’s longest aerial tramway.

The report by Yerkir Media correspondent Gayane Avetisyan will air on
CNN International on the following dates and times:

Friday, Sept. 3: 10:30PM PST
Saturday, Sept. 4: 6:30 AM PST
Sunday, Sept. 5: 6:30 PM PST
Monday, Sept. 6: 1:30 AM PST
Tuesday, Sept. 7: 8:30 PM PST

It will also be available online Monday at http://www.cnn.com/worldview

Spearheading the massive $50-million Tatev Revival Project is the National
Competitiveness Foundation of Armenia. This public-private partnership is
set to officially launch the Project on October 16 with the grand opening of
the $13 million aerial tramway. Under construction since last fall, this 3.5-mile
tramway will link Armenia’s main regional highway to the village of Tatev and
allow visitors to bypass a 90-minute drive in and out of the rocky Vorotan River
Gorge to reach the monastery.

Asbarez columnist Paul Chaderjian was in Tatev this summer to report on the
project and the groundbreaking event. His report, published on August 4, 2010,
is titled ‘Tatev Revival Project Grand Opening in the Fall of 2010’

Chaderjian also wrote a personal travelogue about his visit to the village of Tatev
and his interactions with its villagers in our “Three Apples” column titled, ‘Seat of
the Armenian Soul on July 9, 2010.

Keghart.com Team Editorial

Shame in the Sun

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