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Arutz Sheva, Israel
Oct 15 2012
Turkey Grounds Armenian Plane for Security Check
Ankara ordered an Armenian plane to land in the city of Erzurum for
inspection before allowing it to leave Turkish air space Monday.
By Chana Ya'a
Ankara ordered an Armenian plane to land in the city of Erzurum for
inspection before allowing it to leave Turkish air space Monday. The
Air Armenia cargo plane was headed to the northern Syrian city of
Aleppo.
It was the second plane to be forced to land on Turkish soil in less
than a week. But both countries confirmed the plane was carrying
humanitarian aid as part of a campaign called "Help a Brother." Among
the items aboard the flight were foodstuffs such as buckwheat, rice,
sugar and pasta, according to Armenian Dashnaktsutiun party lawmaker
Vahan Hovannisian.
There is a small Armenian community in Syria numbering between 60,000
to 100,000 people, with most living in Aleppo.
Although no diplomatic ties exist between Turkey and Armenia, and
their border has been closed for more than a decade, the plane's
landing was pre-arranged, AFP reported, quoting Armenian officials.
A Turkish foreign ministry official told the news agency the flight
was required to stop over in Turkey for routine security checks on its
cargo. It was released for departure following the inspection, which
found nothing unusual, according to Turkey's state Anatolia news
agency.
"We know a plane from Armenia was forced to land in (eastern) Erzurum
city but it was allowed to resume its journey," Deputy Prime Minister
Bulent Arinc was quoted as saying. The plane's cargo matched the
manifest filed by crew members prior to the flight, Arinc said. He
added that the security check showed "how well Turkey performed its
duty."
Last week Turkey scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to force down a
commercial airliner flying from Moscow to Damascus. The passenger
flight was escorted to Esenbogen airport in Ankara after Turkey
received a tip from the United States the plane was carrying
non-commercial cargo.
Media later reported the plane may have been carrying missile parts,
communications gear and other military items. Russia vigorously denied
the flight had carried anything other than civilian cargo from its
territory. Syria claimed Turkish officials had lied about what they
found.
The flight was allowed to continue on to Damascus after the suspect
cargo was removed. In response, Syrian subsequently closed its air
space to Turkish aircraft, and Turkey did the same with Syrian
flights.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/160915
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Oct 15 2012
Turkey Grounds Armenian Plane for Security Check
Ankara ordered an Armenian plane to land in the city of Erzurum for
inspection before allowing it to leave Turkish air space Monday.
By Chana Ya'a
Ankara ordered an Armenian plane to land in the city of Erzurum for
inspection before allowing it to leave Turkish air space Monday. The
Air Armenia cargo plane was headed to the northern Syrian city of
Aleppo.
It was the second plane to be forced to land on Turkish soil in less
than a week. But both countries confirmed the plane was carrying
humanitarian aid as part of a campaign called "Help a Brother." Among
the items aboard the flight were foodstuffs such as buckwheat, rice,
sugar and pasta, according to Armenian Dashnaktsutiun party lawmaker
Vahan Hovannisian.
There is a small Armenian community in Syria numbering between 60,000
to 100,000 people, with most living in Aleppo.
Although no diplomatic ties exist between Turkey and Armenia, and
their border has been closed for more than a decade, the plane's
landing was pre-arranged, AFP reported, quoting Armenian officials.
A Turkish foreign ministry official told the news agency the flight
was required to stop over in Turkey for routine security checks on its
cargo. It was released for departure following the inspection, which
found nothing unusual, according to Turkey's state Anatolia news
agency.
"We know a plane from Armenia was forced to land in (eastern) Erzurum
city but it was allowed to resume its journey," Deputy Prime Minister
Bulent Arinc was quoted as saying. The plane's cargo matched the
manifest filed by crew members prior to the flight, Arinc said. He
added that the security check showed "how well Turkey performed its
duty."
Last week Turkey scrambled two F-16 fighter jets to force down a
commercial airliner flying from Moscow to Damascus. The passenger
flight was escorted to Esenbogen airport in Ankara after Turkey
received a tip from the United States the plane was carrying
non-commercial cargo.
Media later reported the plane may have been carrying missile parts,
communications gear and other military items. Russia vigorously denied
the flight had carried anything other than civilian cargo from its
territory. Syria claimed Turkish officials had lied about what they
found.
The flight was allowed to continue on to Damascus after the suspect
cargo was removed. In response, Syrian subsequently closed its air
space to Turkish aircraft, and Turkey did the same with Syrian
flights.
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/160915
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress