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ARMENIANS, FAMILIES OF PILGRIMS UNITE AGAINST TURKEY ON GENOCIDE ANNIVERSARY
Naharnet, Lebanon
April 24, 2013 Wednesday
Armenians marched from Bourj Hammoud to downtown Beirut's Martyrs'
Square on Wednesday to mark the 98th anniversary of the genocide of
their kin by Ottoman Turks during World War I. The protesters held
a rally at the square with speeches made by the leaders of several
Armenian parties. The families of nine Lebanese Shiite pilgrims
kidnapped in Syria joined them over what they said was a common cause.
The relatives of the nine men have been holding daily sit-ins near the
Turkish Airlines offices not far from Martyrs' Square and have called
for boycotting Turkish products. They blame the Turkish government
for the failure to release the pilgrims who are held hostage by Syrian
rebels near the Turkish border in Aleppo district since May 2012.
Ankara is a staunch supporter of the rebel Free Syrian Army that is
fighting regime troops. Armenians say up to 1.5 million people were
killed during World War I as the Ottoman Empire was falling apart,
a claim supported by several other countries. Turkey argues 300,000
to 500,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died in civil strife
when Armenians rose up against their Ottoman rulers and sided with
invading Russian troops. Over 20 countries have so far recognized
the massacres as genocide. On the 98th anniversary of the genocide,
Armenian Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I slammed Turkey for turning
churches into mosques. "How could Turkey which considers itself a
pioneer in coexistence deny the genocide and transform churches into
mosques?" he wondered in a statement.
Turkey should give compensations to the Armenian people and restore
its rights, he said.
Naharnet, Lebanon
April 24, 2013 Wednesday
Armenians marched from Bourj Hammoud to downtown Beirut's Martyrs'
Square on Wednesday to mark the 98th anniversary of the genocide of
their kin by Ottoman Turks during World War I. The protesters held
a rally at the square with speeches made by the leaders of several
Armenian parties. The families of nine Lebanese Shiite pilgrims
kidnapped in Syria joined them over what they said was a common cause.
The relatives of the nine men have been holding daily sit-ins near the
Turkish Airlines offices not far from Martyrs' Square and have called
for boycotting Turkish products. They blame the Turkish government
for the failure to release the pilgrims who are held hostage by Syrian
rebels near the Turkish border in Aleppo district since May 2012.
Ankara is a staunch supporter of the rebel Free Syrian Army that is
fighting regime troops. Armenians say up to 1.5 million people were
killed during World War I as the Ottoman Empire was falling apart,
a claim supported by several other countries. Turkey argues 300,000
to 500,000 Armenians and at least as many Turks died in civil strife
when Armenians rose up against their Ottoman rulers and sided with
invading Russian troops. Over 20 countries have so far recognized
the massacres as genocide. On the 98th anniversary of the genocide,
Armenian Catholicos of Cilicia Aram I slammed Turkey for turning
churches into mosques. "How could Turkey which considers itself a
pioneer in coexistence deny the genocide and transform churches into
mosques?" he wondered in a statement.
Turkey should give compensations to the Armenian people and restore
its rights, he said.