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Syria's Armenians flee to ancestal homeland. ASIA One
13:36, 23 August, 2012
YEREVAN, AUGUST 23, ARMENPRESS: As the passengers from battle-ravaged
Aleppo disembarked at Yerevan's Zvartnots airport, tearful relatives
gripped them tightly in emotional embraces. "Thank God you've arrived
safe and sound!" one cried out.
As Armenpress reports citing Asia One, since fighting has gripped the
city of Aleppo, where many of Syria's ethnic Armenian community live,
increasing numbers have been fleeing to their ancestral homeland over
fears that Christians could suffer if President Bashar al-Assad is
ousted and replaced by an Islamic regime.
Among those arriving in Yerevan was Yenok Sulahian, who said that many
Syrian Armenians had started to plan their escape when the first
clashes began breaking out between rebels and government forces in
Aleppo a month ago. "Shooting and bomb blasts could be heard at night.
The government was warning us all the time not to leave home to avoid
being shot," he said. The diaspora ministry in Yerevan said more than
3,000 Syrian Armenians have arrived since March 2011, when the
government began a brutal crackdown on peaceful anti-regime protests
across the country that has since descended into full-blown conflict
between government forces and opposition fighters. The national
airline Armavia has been laying on additional flights to carry those
seeking to flee. The Armenian community in Syria may be small -
between 60,000 and 100,000 people according to estimates - but its
tragic history has added to its sense of unease. Armenians in Syria
are descendants of those who took refuge there after escaping the
genocide of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey during World War I. They are
long-established Syrian citizens, many with their own businesses. Some
worry that they could face fresh persecution if Assad's government,
which has maintained friendly relations with the authorities in
Yerevan, is replaced by an Islamic regime.
"The Armenian community has taken a neutral position - we call it
pro-Syrian," said an elderly woman arriving at Zvartnots from Aleppo
who declined to give her name. Armenian authorities have taken
measures to make it easier for the Syrian Armenians to return, easing
the visa process and allowing those who want to apply for citizenship
to do so at the consulate in Aleppo, rather than in Yerevan.
"So far we cannot call this process mass migration. Many Armenians do
not want to leave their homes and their businesses," said Firdus
Zakarian, an official at the diaspora ministry's commission for
Syrian-Armenian issues. More than 3,000 Syrian Armenians have applied
for citizenship in the past six months however - a sign of growing
uncertainty about their future in Syria. Over 400 children are also
being flown from Syria to Armenia for holidays in summer camps,
initially for two weeks but potentially for a longer period if the
crisis continues. The diaspora ministry insists that the situation is
not yet critical and that no mass evacuation is being planned. "Today
in Syria there is no anti-Armenian hysteria and no real threat to the
existence of the long-standing Armenian community," Zakarian said.
"We are considering every scenario and if, God forbid, the situation
does become critical, Armenia is ready to assist all our compatriots,"
Zakarian said.
13:36, 23 August, 2012
YEREVAN, AUGUST 23, ARMENPRESS: As the passengers from battle-ravaged
Aleppo disembarked at Yerevan's Zvartnots airport, tearful relatives
gripped them tightly in emotional embraces. "Thank God you've arrived
safe and sound!" one cried out.
As Armenpress reports citing Asia One, since fighting has gripped the
city of Aleppo, where many of Syria's ethnic Armenian community live,
increasing numbers have been fleeing to their ancestral homeland over
fears that Christians could suffer if President Bashar al-Assad is
ousted and replaced by an Islamic regime.
Among those arriving in Yerevan was Yenok Sulahian, who said that many
Syrian Armenians had started to plan their escape when the first
clashes began breaking out between rebels and government forces in
Aleppo a month ago. "Shooting and bomb blasts could be heard at night.
The government was warning us all the time not to leave home to avoid
being shot," he said. The diaspora ministry in Yerevan said more than
3,000 Syrian Armenians have arrived since March 2011, when the
government began a brutal crackdown on peaceful anti-regime protests
across the country that has since descended into full-blown conflict
between government forces and opposition fighters. The national
airline Armavia has been laying on additional flights to carry those
seeking to flee. The Armenian community in Syria may be small -
between 60,000 and 100,000 people according to estimates - but its
tragic history has added to its sense of unease. Armenians in Syria
are descendants of those who took refuge there after escaping the
genocide of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey during World War I. They are
long-established Syrian citizens, many with their own businesses. Some
worry that they could face fresh persecution if Assad's government,
which has maintained friendly relations with the authorities in
Yerevan, is replaced by an Islamic regime.
"The Armenian community has taken a neutral position - we call it
pro-Syrian," said an elderly woman arriving at Zvartnots from Aleppo
who declined to give her name. Armenian authorities have taken
measures to make it easier for the Syrian Armenians to return, easing
the visa process and allowing those who want to apply for citizenship
to do so at the consulate in Aleppo, rather than in Yerevan.
"So far we cannot call this process mass migration. Many Armenians do
not want to leave their homes and their businesses," said Firdus
Zakarian, an official at the diaspora ministry's commission for
Syrian-Armenian issues. More than 3,000 Syrian Armenians have applied
for citizenship in the past six months however - a sign of growing
uncertainty about their future in Syria. Over 400 children are also
being flown from Syria to Armenia for holidays in summer camps,
initially for two weeks but potentially for a longer period if the
crisis continues. The diaspora ministry insists that the situation is
not yet critical and that no mass evacuation is being planned. "Today
in Syria there is no anti-Armenian hysteria and no real threat to the
existence of the long-standing Armenian community," Zakarian said.
"We are considering every scenario and if, God forbid, the situation
does become critical, Armenia is ready to assist all our compatriots,"
Zakarian said.