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SYRIA'S KESSAB: THE DEVASTATION OF AN ARMENIAN SAFE HAVEN
Al-Akhbar, Lebanon
March 26 2014
By: Kevork Almassian
Published Wednesday, March 26, 2014
The Syrian town of Kessab, once a popular holiday destination,
has recently come under heavy gunfire from rebel groups linked to
al-Qaeda. Armed men entered the town, looted Armenian shops and homes,
taking families hostage, and desecrating the town's three churches.
The attack has forced at least 2,000 ethnic Armenian civilians to seek
refuge in Latakia and other neighboring hills. For Syria watchers,
this incident further highlights the systematic targeting of Christian
communities in the country.
Part of an ancient civilization that extends from the Syrian coast
up to the valley of the Orontes River, Kessab is located in the far
northern countryside of Latakia, 2 km south of the Turkish border and
7 km east of the coastline. The majority of the population in Kessab
and the surrounding region are descendants of the survivors of the
Siege of Antioch (Antakya), which took place in the thirteenth and
fourteenth centuries. Many Antochians, predominantly ethnic Armenians,
fled Ottoman persecution and found refuge in more mountainous regions,
such as Kessab. Centuries later, in 1915, fleeing massacres at the
hands of Ottoman Turks, more Armenians found refuge in Kessab while
others perished in the desert of Deir el-Zor and toward the south of
the Jordanian desert.
Almost a hundred years after the Armenian Genocide of 1915, the AKP
government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan appears to have
proven William Faulkner's saying: "The past is not dead. In fact it
is not even past."
Turkey intervened in the Syrian crisis from its early stages. Erdogan -
along with other countries - provided anti-regime forces safe havens
inside Turkish territories and turned a blind eye to the influx of
foreign fighters into Syria, including some from Chechnya and other
Central Asian countries. Those fighters currently form the strongest
elements of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and other
al-Qaeda affiliated groups.
While Syrian-Armenian parties did not participate in the ongoing war -
apart from young Syrian-Armenians who are conscripted into the army -
the Armenian community was not spared from the systematic targeting
of ethnic and religious minorities by anti-government forces, such
as the St. Kevork Church in Aleppo, the Armenian Catholic Church in
Raqqa, among many other churches, schools and institutions.
The Syrian government, as well as several Armenian websites, reported
the recent cross-border attacks were waged from three border points
inside Turkish territories. According to security sources in Kessab,
the attacks were waged under heavy artillery cover by the Turkish
army, while the injured were being treated in the city of Yayladagi
in Turkey, which borders Syria.
Three days before the assault on Kessab, the leader of Turkey's
opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), Kemal Kilicdaroglu,
called on Chief of General Staff General Necdet Ozel "not to embark
on an adventure" with a military intervention in Syria, saying that
"He [Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan] could decide to move the
army into Syria before the elections."
Kilicdaroglu's prediction seems to have come true when the Turkish
air force gunned down a Syrian warplane on March 23, in an area where
al-Qaeda affiliated groups have been battling the Syrian Army and
National Defense Forces (NDF) over control of a border crossing. PM
Erdogancongratulated his army in an election rally in northwest Turkey.
Analysts believe this could be Erdogan's last card before local
elections in Turkey take place on March 30. Some Syrian observers
believe this escalation on the part of Turkey is a provocative act
aimed at dragging both armies into a direct confrontation in order
to mobilize the Turkish public and regain some of the support Erdogan
lost in the last few months as a result of the corruption scandals and
restrictions on media freedom. With Erdogan's popularity in decline,
he is seemingly hoping to export the internal crisis abroad to gain
a moral victory which could help him in the upcoming elections.
Abdoullah Ali, an expert on Islamic groups in Syria, confirmed the
takeover was headed by Abou Mousa al-Chechani (Chechnyan), among
other senior and experienced fighters who had previously fought in
Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya and Iraq, thus indicating the importance
of this battle.
These vicious and unprompted attacks against the Armenian-populated
towns and villages of Kessab are the latest examples of this violence,
actively encouraged by neighboring Turkey.Kessab was the only city
bordering Turkey that was controlled by the Syrian government.
Syrian-Armenian war correspondent Sarkis Kassargian believes taking
control of Kessab means taking control of the border crossing with
Turkey, which allows anti-government fighters to advance toward the
coastline, and in turn strengthen their position on the ground. In
addition, the alleged capture of Samra village by rebel forces grants
them access to the highest point in the village.
An influential Washington-based Armenian advocacy group, the Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA), has condemned the "onslaught on
Kessab" and accused Turkey of facilitating the infiltration of radical
groups in their attacks on Christian and other minority populations in
Kessab. The group has also called on the US administration and Congress
to pressure Ankara to end its support for "the destruction of Kessab."
"For months, we have warned the international community of the imminent
threat posed by extremist foreign fighters against the Christian
minority population in Syria," the group said, in a statement. "These
vicious and unprompted attacks against the Armenian-populated towns
and villages of Kessab are the latest examples of this violence,
actively encouraged by neighboring Turkey.
We call upon all states with any influence in the Syrian conflict to
use all available means to stop these attacks against the peaceful
civilian population of Kessab, to allow them to return to their homes
in safety and security."
After targeting the Armenian-populated villages of Ghnaymiyeh
and Yaakoubiyeh, it is now the turn of Kessab, from which some 670
Armenian families fled to Latakia under the protection of the Syrian
Army. Armenians who were displaced from Aleppo to Kessab have found
themselves homeless yet again in Latakia. "Is this is our destiny?"
many Armenians are now wondering.
Kevork Almassian is a political analyst specializing in Middle East
affairs. He's also a presenter and programme producer at Al-Etejah TV.
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/syria%E2%80%99s-kessab-devastation-armenian-safe-haven
Al-Akhbar, Lebanon
March 26 2014
By: Kevork Almassian
Published Wednesday, March 26, 2014
The Syrian town of Kessab, once a popular holiday destination,
has recently come under heavy gunfire from rebel groups linked to
al-Qaeda. Armed men entered the town, looted Armenian shops and homes,
taking families hostage, and desecrating the town's three churches.
The attack has forced at least 2,000 ethnic Armenian civilians to seek
refuge in Latakia and other neighboring hills. For Syria watchers,
this incident further highlights the systematic targeting of Christian
communities in the country.
Part of an ancient civilization that extends from the Syrian coast
up to the valley of the Orontes River, Kessab is located in the far
northern countryside of Latakia, 2 km south of the Turkish border and
7 km east of the coastline. The majority of the population in Kessab
and the surrounding region are descendants of the survivors of the
Siege of Antioch (Antakya), which took place in the thirteenth and
fourteenth centuries. Many Antochians, predominantly ethnic Armenians,
fled Ottoman persecution and found refuge in more mountainous regions,
such as Kessab. Centuries later, in 1915, fleeing massacres at the
hands of Ottoman Turks, more Armenians found refuge in Kessab while
others perished in the desert of Deir el-Zor and toward the south of
the Jordanian desert.
Almost a hundred years after the Armenian Genocide of 1915, the AKP
government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan appears to have
proven William Faulkner's saying: "The past is not dead. In fact it
is not even past."
Turkey intervened in the Syrian crisis from its early stages. Erdogan -
along with other countries - provided anti-regime forces safe havens
inside Turkish territories and turned a blind eye to the influx of
foreign fighters into Syria, including some from Chechnya and other
Central Asian countries. Those fighters currently form the strongest
elements of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) and other
al-Qaeda affiliated groups.
While Syrian-Armenian parties did not participate in the ongoing war -
apart from young Syrian-Armenians who are conscripted into the army -
the Armenian community was not spared from the systematic targeting
of ethnic and religious minorities by anti-government forces, such
as the St. Kevork Church in Aleppo, the Armenian Catholic Church in
Raqqa, among many other churches, schools and institutions.
The Syrian government, as well as several Armenian websites, reported
the recent cross-border attacks were waged from three border points
inside Turkish territories. According to security sources in Kessab,
the attacks were waged under heavy artillery cover by the Turkish
army, while the injured were being treated in the city of Yayladagi
in Turkey, which borders Syria.
Three days before the assault on Kessab, the leader of Turkey's
opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), Kemal Kilicdaroglu,
called on Chief of General Staff General Necdet Ozel "not to embark
on an adventure" with a military intervention in Syria, saying that
"He [Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan] could decide to move the
army into Syria before the elections."
Kilicdaroglu's prediction seems to have come true when the Turkish
air force gunned down a Syrian warplane on March 23, in an area where
al-Qaeda affiliated groups have been battling the Syrian Army and
National Defense Forces (NDF) over control of a border crossing. PM
Erdogancongratulated his army in an election rally in northwest Turkey.
Analysts believe this could be Erdogan's last card before local
elections in Turkey take place on March 30. Some Syrian observers
believe this escalation on the part of Turkey is a provocative act
aimed at dragging both armies into a direct confrontation in order
to mobilize the Turkish public and regain some of the support Erdogan
lost in the last few months as a result of the corruption scandals and
restrictions on media freedom. With Erdogan's popularity in decline,
he is seemingly hoping to export the internal crisis abroad to gain
a moral victory which could help him in the upcoming elections.
Abdoullah Ali, an expert on Islamic groups in Syria, confirmed the
takeover was headed by Abou Mousa al-Chechani (Chechnyan), among
other senior and experienced fighters who had previously fought in
Afghanistan, Bosnia, Chechnya and Iraq, thus indicating the importance
of this battle.
These vicious and unprompted attacks against the Armenian-populated
towns and villages of Kessab are the latest examples of this violence,
actively encouraged by neighboring Turkey.Kessab was the only city
bordering Turkey that was controlled by the Syrian government.
Syrian-Armenian war correspondent Sarkis Kassargian believes taking
control of Kessab means taking control of the border crossing with
Turkey, which allows anti-government fighters to advance toward the
coastline, and in turn strengthen their position on the ground. In
addition, the alleged capture of Samra village by rebel forces grants
them access to the highest point in the village.
An influential Washington-based Armenian advocacy group, the Armenian
National Committee of America (ANCA), has condemned the "onslaught on
Kessab" and accused Turkey of facilitating the infiltration of radical
groups in their attacks on Christian and other minority populations in
Kessab. The group has also called on the US administration and Congress
to pressure Ankara to end its support for "the destruction of Kessab."
"For months, we have warned the international community of the imminent
threat posed by extremist foreign fighters against the Christian
minority population in Syria," the group said, in a statement. "These
vicious and unprompted attacks against the Armenian-populated towns
and villages of Kessab are the latest examples of this violence,
actively encouraged by neighboring Turkey.
We call upon all states with any influence in the Syrian conflict to
use all available means to stop these attacks against the peaceful
civilian population of Kessab, to allow them to return to their homes
in safety and security."
After targeting the Armenian-populated villages of Ghnaymiyeh
and Yaakoubiyeh, it is now the turn of Kessab, from which some 670
Armenian families fled to Latakia under the protection of the Syrian
Army. Armenians who were displaced from Aleppo to Kessab have found
themselves homeless yet again in Latakia. "Is this is our destiny?"
many Armenians are now wondering.
Kevork Almassian is a political analyst specializing in Middle East
affairs. He's also a presenter and programme producer at Al-Etejah TV.
http://english.al-akhbar.com/content/syria%E2%80%99s-kessab-devastation-armenian-safe-haven