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Armenian Assembly of America News
1334 G Street, N.W., Suite 200
Washington, D.C. 20005
Tel: (202) 393-3434
Fax: (202) 638-4904
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: http://armenianassembly.tumblr.com/
Congressman Frank Wolf Stands in Solidarity with the People of Kassab, Syria
April 7, 2014
Last Friday, Congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA) made a statement on the House
floor "in solidarity with the people of Kassab, Syria." Congressman Wolf's
comments were welcomed by the Armenian Assembly of America, as he joins a
growing chorus of legislators to call attention to the terrorist attack on
the predominantly Christian Armenian city.
On March 27, the Assembly's executive director, Bryan Ardouny, and
Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Diocesan Legate of the Armenian Church of
America (Eastern), met with officials at the U.S. Department of State. The
meeting came just days after the Assembly sent a pointed letter to
President Barack Obama urging him to take steps to safeguard the Armenians
of Kessab. The National Council of Churches also wrote a letter to
President Obama asking him to safeguard the Christian Armenians of Kessab.
Last Wednesday, March 26, the Assembly publicly condemned the assault on
Kessab and remains alarmed at credible reports that Al-Qaeda affiliated
Islamic extremists crossed into Syria via NATO ally Turkey, resulting in
the displacement of over 650 families and the confiscation and looting of
Armenian homes, businesses and religious sanctuaries.
Below is the full statement of Congressman Frank Wolf:
IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE PEOPLE OF KASSAB, SYRIA
---
SPEECH OF
HON. FRANK R. WOLF
OF VIRGINIA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in solidarity with the people of Kassab, Syria .
Their town was overtaken by Islamist rebels late last month. The town's
inhabitants, who are largely Armenian Christians, have been forced by
jihadist rebels to evacuate their homes and seek refuge in Lebanon and the
nearby city of Latakia. I submit an article which ran in yesterday's
Washington Post which paints a deeply disturbing picture of the events
unfolding in Kassab.
This is yet another case of Christians and other religious minorities
being pulled into violent conflicts in the Middle East. Throughout the
region, small and peaceful minority groups are often the first to suffer
collateral damage, as we have seen in recent years not only in Syria, but
also in Iraq, in Egypt, and elsewhere.
It is especially poignant to recognize the people of Kassab at this time
of year, since April 24 is the Genocide Remembrance Day observed by
Armenians around the world to commemorate the atrocities committed against
their people nearly a hundred years ago.
I have advocated for a non-governmental bipartisan Syria Study Group to
bring a fresh approach and possibly creative solutions forward to address
the ongoing conflict in that country. It is inexcusable for the world to
stand by while families are being driven from their homes, children are
being killed and ancient communities' very existence threatened.
[From the Washington Post, Apr. 2, 2014]
SYRIAN ARMENIANS, WHO HAD BEEN INSULATED FROM WAR, FORCED TO FLEE AFTER
REBEL OFFENSIVE
(By Loveday Morris)
ANJAR, LEBANON.--Some fled in their nightclothes, others in their farming
boots straight from the fields. Many thought they'd be able to return in a
few hours but now fear they may never again.
Until the shells started raining down late last month, the tiny Syrian
village of Kassab and surrounding villages had been largely sheltered from
the three-year-old conflict that has devastated other parts of Syria . But
now the area is the focus of a rebel offensive in the coastal province of
Latakia, and an accompanying social-media storm of disinformation.
Kassab, a lush, mountainous idyll abutting the Turkish border, is an
ancestral home of Syria's minority ethnic Armenians, Christians who have
lived on the land for a millennium. But the attack by jihadist rebels
sparked a mass exodus from Kassab and nearby villages.
The picturesque Armenian hillside villages in the north of Latakia provide
a foothold for a push into the rest of the province--a heartland of Syria's
minority Alawites, who are largely supportive of President Bashar al-Assad.
The area holds little other strategic value for the opposition, but the
limited gains there have boosted rebel morale amid a string of defeats
elsewhere, with the leader of the main opposition body, Ahmad al-Jarba,
making a rare visit to Syria this week to tour the area and meet with
fighters.
The Armenian diaspora, including some celebrities, has expressed outrage,
demanding that the United States act to protect the Armenian community in
Syria . The State Department has said it is "deeply troubled" by the
developments.
Some Syrian government loyalists have launched a propaganda campaign
accusing rebels of mass killings and desecrating churches in the area,
sparking fierce rebuttals from opposition activists.
But the people of Kassab, like the 7 million others who have been
displaced by the civil war, are focusing on trying to rebuild their lives
after being torn from their land. At least 30 families have fled to
neighboring Lebanon, seeking refuge in the Armenian village of Anjar and in
the capital, Beirut, and the testimonies of more than a dozen shed some
light on the events surrounding the offensive.
All but about 30 of the area's roughly 2,500 residents fled within 48
hours of the attack, they said. The fate of those who remained, who were
too old or unwilling to leave, is unknown, with communications to the
villages cut. There was no major loss of life, they say, with just one
known death, that of a local teacher who was hit in her car by a sniper as
she tried to flee. Still, the mass exodus is particularly emotional, with
Armenians from Kassab having been forced to leave their homes twice in the
past century because of persecution by the Turks.
The Armenians first fled during the Adana massacre of 1909, when tens of
thousands died at the hands of the Ottomans.
Then, in 1915, as many as 5,000 residents of Kassab died during the
fracturing empire's murderous campaign against the Armenians, which is
widely recognized as a genocide.
"Now it's 2014, and we are being displaced again," said a 41-year-old
farmer's wife who arrived in Lebanon a week ago. Like others fleeing the
loyalist area, she spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of
reprisals if she and her family return.
"But thank God that this time there is no massacre," she said. "We believe
that, as Armenians, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
Once again, the Armenians see the hand of their long-standing enemy behind
their displacement, saying the rebel attack was launched from Turkish soil.
Many of the farms and homes in what was once a popular tourist spot offer
sweeping views of the Turkish border.
The offensive, they say, began about 5 a.m. on March 21, with villagers
waking to the sound of heavy machine-gun fire, followed by shelling.
Two Syrian border posts were first struck, according to the accounts of
several residents. With the posts manned only by lightly armed Syrian
border police, residents said there was little in the way of defense
against the push by jihadist rebel groups, which included the
al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham.
Not long after, the main border crossing to Turkey fell, residents said.
Villagers had prepared evacuation plans. In case of an attack,
instructions were for women and children to congregate in Nabaeen, a
village farthest from the Turkish border, with a back road to the city of
Latakia.
By 7 a.m., one Nabaeen farmer said, about 50 people had gathered at his
house. "People were crying and yelling that they had nothing with them.
Some were in their slippers and pajamas," he said. "It was a sad
situation."
Despite the chaos, many grabbed the deeds to their houses--an instinct,
they say, for a people with a history of displacement. Some of the men
stayed behind to see how the situation developed.
"We left all our valuables and had nothing more than the clothes we were
wearing," said one 40- year-old mother of three. As the shelling picked up,
by 11 a.m. most of the families had left Nabaeen for the safety of Latakia,
35 miles south, as Syrian army reinforcements made their way north.
By March 23, the rebels had reached the center of Kassab. Villagers point
to Turkey's shooting down of a Syrian jet attempting to hit the invading
fighters later that day as further evidence of Turkish support for rebels.
A Turkish diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the
sensitivity of the subject, said that no rebels are "deliberately" allowed
to use the Turkish border and that if there was shelling into Kassab from
Turkey on March 21, it was because of new rules of engagement, which allow
the country's armed forces to retaliate when fired at to deter further
attacks.
Turkey also said that the jet it shot down had strayed into its
airspace.
Jihadist fighters who entered Kassab have gone to great lengths to stress
that they are not desecrating churches or hurting civilians.
The mother of three said that after she arrived in Latakia with her
children, she called home, and a man who identified himself as a member of
Ja'hat al-Nusra answered.
"He said, 'Come back, why did you leave your home? We have come here to
protect you,'" she recalled, though she added that he later said she should
convert to Islam before returning. "I pleaded with him, 'Eat and drink
whatever you like, but please don't destroy the house.'"
But Kassab's displaced residents are not convinced by the jihadists'
assurances, and some fear they will never be able to feel safe in the area
again, even if the government succeeds in pushing out the rebels.
One farmer, who sold his car in Latakia to afford the journey to Lebanon,
said his grandmother survived a notorious death march from the village to
the city of Horns during the genocide but still returned to Kassab.
This time, he's not sure his family will make it back.
"Our roots are there, everything is there," his wife said, "but we can't."
The Washington Post article "Syrian Armenians, Who Had Been Insulated From
War, Forced to Flee After Rebel Offensive" by Loveday Morris is available
online here: http://wapo.st/QFJsxd
This story is available online here: http://bit.ly/OszRIf
1334 G Street, N.W., Suite 200
Washington, D.C. 20005
Tel: (202) 393-3434
Fax: (202) 638-4904
E-mail: [email protected]
Web: http://armenianassembly.tumblr.com/
Congressman Frank Wolf Stands in Solidarity with the People of Kassab, Syria
April 7, 2014
Last Friday, Congressman Frank Wolf (R-VA) made a statement on the House
floor "in solidarity with the people of Kassab, Syria." Congressman Wolf's
comments were welcomed by the Armenian Assembly of America, as he joins a
growing chorus of legislators to call attention to the terrorist attack on
the predominantly Christian Armenian city.
On March 27, the Assembly's executive director, Bryan Ardouny, and
Archbishop Vicken Aykazian, Diocesan Legate of the Armenian Church of
America (Eastern), met with officials at the U.S. Department of State. The
meeting came just days after the Assembly sent a pointed letter to
President Barack Obama urging him to take steps to safeguard the Armenians
of Kessab. The National Council of Churches also wrote a letter to
President Obama asking him to safeguard the Christian Armenians of Kessab.
Last Wednesday, March 26, the Assembly publicly condemned the assault on
Kessab and remains alarmed at credible reports that Al-Qaeda affiliated
Islamic extremists crossed into Syria via NATO ally Turkey, resulting in
the displacement of over 650 families and the confiscation and looting of
Armenian homes, businesses and religious sanctuaries.
Below is the full statement of Congressman Frank Wolf:
IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE PEOPLE OF KASSAB, SYRIA
---
SPEECH OF
HON. FRANK R. WOLF
OF VIRGINIA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FRIDAY, APRIL 4, 2014
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in solidarity with the people of Kassab, Syria .
Their town was overtaken by Islamist rebels late last month. The town's
inhabitants, who are largely Armenian Christians, have been forced by
jihadist rebels to evacuate their homes and seek refuge in Lebanon and the
nearby city of Latakia. I submit an article which ran in yesterday's
Washington Post which paints a deeply disturbing picture of the events
unfolding in Kassab.
This is yet another case of Christians and other religious minorities
being pulled into violent conflicts in the Middle East. Throughout the
region, small and peaceful minority groups are often the first to suffer
collateral damage, as we have seen in recent years not only in Syria, but
also in Iraq, in Egypt, and elsewhere.
It is especially poignant to recognize the people of Kassab at this time
of year, since April 24 is the Genocide Remembrance Day observed by
Armenians around the world to commemorate the atrocities committed against
their people nearly a hundred years ago.
I have advocated for a non-governmental bipartisan Syria Study Group to
bring a fresh approach and possibly creative solutions forward to address
the ongoing conflict in that country. It is inexcusable for the world to
stand by while families are being driven from their homes, children are
being killed and ancient communities' very existence threatened.
[From the Washington Post, Apr. 2, 2014]
SYRIAN ARMENIANS, WHO HAD BEEN INSULATED FROM WAR, FORCED TO FLEE AFTER
REBEL OFFENSIVE
(By Loveday Morris)
ANJAR, LEBANON.--Some fled in their nightclothes, others in their farming
boots straight from the fields. Many thought they'd be able to return in a
few hours but now fear they may never again.
Until the shells started raining down late last month, the tiny Syrian
village of Kassab and surrounding villages had been largely sheltered from
the three-year-old conflict that has devastated other parts of Syria . But
now the area is the focus of a rebel offensive in the coastal province of
Latakia, and an accompanying social-media storm of disinformation.
Kassab, a lush, mountainous idyll abutting the Turkish border, is an
ancestral home of Syria's minority ethnic Armenians, Christians who have
lived on the land for a millennium. But the attack by jihadist rebels
sparked a mass exodus from Kassab and nearby villages.
The picturesque Armenian hillside villages in the north of Latakia provide
a foothold for a push into the rest of the province--a heartland of Syria's
minority Alawites, who are largely supportive of President Bashar al-Assad.
The area holds little other strategic value for the opposition, but the
limited gains there have boosted rebel morale amid a string of defeats
elsewhere, with the leader of the main opposition body, Ahmad al-Jarba,
making a rare visit to Syria this week to tour the area and meet with
fighters.
The Armenian diaspora, including some celebrities, has expressed outrage,
demanding that the United States act to protect the Armenian community in
Syria . The State Department has said it is "deeply troubled" by the
developments.
Some Syrian government loyalists have launched a propaganda campaign
accusing rebels of mass killings and desecrating churches in the area,
sparking fierce rebuttals from opposition activists.
But the people of Kassab, like the 7 million others who have been
displaced by the civil war, are focusing on trying to rebuild their lives
after being torn from their land. At least 30 families have fled to
neighboring Lebanon, seeking refuge in the Armenian village of Anjar and in
the capital, Beirut, and the testimonies of more than a dozen shed some
light on the events surrounding the offensive.
All but about 30 of the area's roughly 2,500 residents fled within 48
hours of the attack, they said. The fate of those who remained, who were
too old or unwilling to leave, is unknown, with communications to the
villages cut. There was no major loss of life, they say, with just one
known death, that of a local teacher who was hit in her car by a sniper as
she tried to flee. Still, the mass exodus is particularly emotional, with
Armenians from Kassab having been forced to leave their homes twice in the
past century because of persecution by the Turks.
The Armenians first fled during the Adana massacre of 1909, when tens of
thousands died at the hands of the Ottomans.
Then, in 1915, as many as 5,000 residents of Kassab died during the
fracturing empire's murderous campaign against the Armenians, which is
widely recognized as a genocide.
"Now it's 2014, and we are being displaced again," said a 41-year-old
farmer's wife who arrived in Lebanon a week ago. Like others fleeing the
loyalist area, she spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of
reprisals if she and her family return.
"But thank God that this time there is no massacre," she said. "We believe
that, as Armenians, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger."
Once again, the Armenians see the hand of their long-standing enemy behind
their displacement, saying the rebel attack was launched from Turkish soil.
Many of the farms and homes in what was once a popular tourist spot offer
sweeping views of the Turkish border.
The offensive, they say, began about 5 a.m. on March 21, with villagers
waking to the sound of heavy machine-gun fire, followed by shelling.
Two Syrian border posts were first struck, according to the accounts of
several residents. With the posts manned only by lightly armed Syrian
border police, residents said there was little in the way of defense
against the push by jihadist rebel groups, which included the
al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra and the Islamist Ahrar al-Sham.
Not long after, the main border crossing to Turkey fell, residents said.
Villagers had prepared evacuation plans. In case of an attack,
instructions were for women and children to congregate in Nabaeen, a
village farthest from the Turkish border, with a back road to the city of
Latakia.
By 7 a.m., one Nabaeen farmer said, about 50 people had gathered at his
house. "People were crying and yelling that they had nothing with them.
Some were in their slippers and pajamas," he said. "It was a sad
situation."
Despite the chaos, many grabbed the deeds to their houses--an instinct,
they say, for a people with a history of displacement. Some of the men
stayed behind to see how the situation developed.
"We left all our valuables and had nothing more than the clothes we were
wearing," said one 40- year-old mother of three. As the shelling picked up,
by 11 a.m. most of the families had left Nabaeen for the safety of Latakia,
35 miles south, as Syrian army reinforcements made their way north.
By March 23, the rebels had reached the center of Kassab. Villagers point
to Turkey's shooting down of a Syrian jet attempting to hit the invading
fighters later that day as further evidence of Turkish support for rebels.
A Turkish diplomat, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the
sensitivity of the subject, said that no rebels are "deliberately" allowed
to use the Turkish border and that if there was shelling into Kassab from
Turkey on March 21, it was because of new rules of engagement, which allow
the country's armed forces to retaliate when fired at to deter further
attacks.
Turkey also said that the jet it shot down had strayed into its
airspace.
Jihadist fighters who entered Kassab have gone to great lengths to stress
that they are not desecrating churches or hurting civilians.
The mother of three said that after she arrived in Latakia with her
children, she called home, and a man who identified himself as a member of
Ja'hat al-Nusra answered.
"He said, 'Come back, why did you leave your home? We have come here to
protect you,'" she recalled, though she added that he later said she should
convert to Islam before returning. "I pleaded with him, 'Eat and drink
whatever you like, but please don't destroy the house.'"
But Kassab's displaced residents are not convinced by the jihadists'
assurances, and some fear they will never be able to feel safe in the area
again, even if the government succeeds in pushing out the rebels.
One farmer, who sold his car in Latakia to afford the journey to Lebanon,
said his grandmother survived a notorious death march from the village to
the city of Horns during the genocide but still returned to Kassab.
This time, he's not sure his family will make it back.
"Our roots are there, everything is there," his wife said, "but we can't."
The Washington Post article "Syrian Armenians, Who Had Been Insulated From
War, Forced to Flee After Rebel Offensive" by Loveday Morris is available
online here: http://wapo.st/QFJsxd
This story is available online here: http://bit.ly/OszRIf