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ETCHMIADZIN, CILICIA DENOUNCE DESTRUCTION OF MEMORIAL CHURCH BY ISIS
http://asbarez.com/127199/etchmiadzin-cilicia-denounce-destruction-of-memorial-church-by-isis/
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2014
A view of the interior of the now-destroyed Armenian Genocide memorial
church in Deir ez-Zor
DEIR EZ-ZOR, Syria--The Holy Sees of Etchmiadzin and Cilicia condemned
Sunday's destruction of an Armenian memorial church in Deir ez Zor,
Syria, which was built to commemorate the victims of the Armenian
Genocide in a part of Syrian where countless Armenians were sent
to die in death marches. The church was reportedly destroyed by the
Islamic State (ISIS), on the day of Armenia's independence anniversary.
"The destruction of the Church containing the remains of victims of
the Armenian Genocide is a disrespectful step towards the Armenian
people and the memory of its innocent victims," a statement from the
Mother See of Etchmiadzin said.
"It was an apparent attempt to strike the Armenian people's just claims
of reparation ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
"What happened in Deir ez-Zor is an inhumane barbarity, which cannot
be justified by any religion or ideology based on religious and
humanitarian values," the Mother See said.
Etchmiadzin urged the international community to condemn the act of
vandalism in order to prevent the reoccurrence of similar crimes in
the future.
Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia also strongly condemned
the Islamic State's recent terrorist act.
The patriarch said that he was aware that the bombing of the Armenian
church was part of a premeditated plot that led also to the destruction
of an adjacent museum and complex.
"We view this atrocity, committed in the run-up to the Armenian
Genocide centennial and on the 23rd anniversary of Armenia's
independence, as an act of barbarism. Many of those standing behind
this plot know that Deir ez-Zor, which symbolizes our martyrs' memory
and our nation's struggle for justice, will never be destroyed as a
sacred place in our nation's collective memory," reads his post.
Aram I says he later addressed the violent incident at a meeting
with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Archbishop Ieronymos
II of Athens.
He called upon top government officials and clergymen to strictly
condemn the atrocity and attract international attention to the act.
http://asbarez.com/127199/etchmiadzin-cilicia-denounce-destruction-of-memorial-church-by-isis/
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2014
A view of the interior of the now-destroyed Armenian Genocide memorial
church in Deir ez-Zor
DEIR EZ-ZOR, Syria--The Holy Sees of Etchmiadzin and Cilicia condemned
Sunday's destruction of an Armenian memorial church in Deir ez Zor,
Syria, which was built to commemorate the victims of the Armenian
Genocide in a part of Syrian where countless Armenians were sent
to die in death marches. The church was reportedly destroyed by the
Islamic State (ISIS), on the day of Armenia's independence anniversary.
"The destruction of the Church containing the remains of victims of
the Armenian Genocide is a disrespectful step towards the Armenian
people and the memory of its innocent victims," a statement from the
Mother See of Etchmiadzin said.
"It was an apparent attempt to strike the Armenian people's just claims
of reparation ahead of the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide.
"What happened in Deir ez-Zor is an inhumane barbarity, which cannot
be justified by any religion or ideology based on religious and
humanitarian values," the Mother See said.
Etchmiadzin urged the international community to condemn the act of
vandalism in order to prevent the reoccurrence of similar crimes in
the future.
Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia also strongly condemned
the Islamic State's recent terrorist act.
The patriarch said that he was aware that the bombing of the Armenian
church was part of a premeditated plot that led also to the destruction
of an adjacent museum and complex.
"We view this atrocity, committed in the run-up to the Armenian
Genocide centennial and on the 23rd anniversary of Armenia's
independence, as an act of barbarism. Many of those standing behind
this plot know that Deir ez-Zor, which symbolizes our martyrs' memory
and our nation's struggle for justice, will never be destroyed as a
sacred place in our nation's collective memory," reads his post.
Aram I says he later addressed the violent incident at a meeting
with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras and Archbishop Ieronymos
II of Athens.
He called upon top government officials and clergymen to strictly
condemn the atrocity and attract international attention to the act.