Aleppo's Armenian Church of Forty Martyrs: Serious Damage

Reports from news agencies and the Armenian press surfaced in the morning of April 29, claiming that the Armenian church of Forty Martyrs, dating back to the fifteenth century and located in the old quarter of Jdeydeh, Aleppo, had been destroyed in the afternoon of April 26, 2015 by a terrorist attack. However, reports coming from Aleppo on April 29 indicated that the structure of the church was stable, but in a worrisome state due to continuous shelling over the past few days in the neighborhood. The door of the church has been damaged and the courtyard of the "Aghbalian" hall of the Armenian Prelacy has collapsed. The actual building that was destroyed was the Maronite print shop, located behind the church complex.

Who Blew Up the Armenian Genocide Memorial Church in Deir el-Zour?

Sam Hardy

 

Fifty days after the destruction of the Armenian Genocide Martyrs’ Memorial Church in Deir el-Zour, Robert Fisk has reported it in the Independent, but his article is riddled with peculiarities, mistakes, and historical inconsistencies.

Peculiarities and mistakes

For one thing, the report feels strangely timed. It declares that the “act of sacrilege will cause huge pain” to Armenians around the world — seven weeks after the attack was lamented by political and religious representatives of the aggrieved community.

"We Don’t Run": An Interview with Archbishop Shahan Sarkisian, Prelate of Aleppo

Nanore Barsoumian

 

In late October, Archbishop Shahan Sarkisian, the prelate of Aleppo, granted an interview to the Armenian Weekly. The Archbishop was in Boston to meet with community organizations and to personally thank the Armenian Relief Society (ARS) for its efforts in providing assistance to the Syrian-Armenian community. During the hour-long interview—conducted in Armenian—Archbishop Sarkisian gave an overview of the Syrian crisis, and spoke about the challenges facing the community today. He was direct in criticizing the worldwide Armenian community for failing to respond to the crisis in a united and comprehensive manner. He said that there is a difference between being concerned and interested—and argued that what he was witnessing was interest and not concern. To be concerned, he added, means to take on responsibility, and that has been missing in the relief efforts.

Archbishop Sarkisian emphasized the importance of keeping Armenian schools in Syria open for students—a cause he considers vital to the survival of the community. “Armenian schools are the light of our eyes,” he said, and they need the support of the diaspora. He also spoke about communal organization, relations with neighboring communities, and the dangers before them.

ISIS Destroys Armenian Genocide Memorial Church in Der Zor

The Islamic State (also known as ISIS) destroyed the Armenian Genocide Memorial Church in Der Zor, news agencies in the Middle East reported.

The reports surfaced as Armenia was celebrating the 23rd anniversary of its independence on September 21.

Armenia’s Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian issued a statement condemning the destruction of the church, which housed the remains of victims of the Armenian Genocide, calling it a “horrible barbarity.”

From Der Zor to Majdanek: Genocide Trivialized in Scandinavia

Suzanne Khardalian

 

Two appalling events took place in Scandinavia last week. It all started when the Armenian Genocide Museum and Institute in Yerevan started putting together a small exhibition on Scandinavia and the Armenian Genocide about two years ago. The exhibit began touring the Scandinavian capitals this year, and came to the Danish capital, Copenhagen, about a month ago, where it was set up in a room belonging to the Royal Library (yet located at the University of Copenhagen). The surprise came when the director of the Royal Library, Erland Kolding Nielsen, in his opening speech announced there would be an “alternative” exhibition arranged by the Turkish Embassy, with the announced title, “The so-called Armenian genocide.” What to do? Protest, of course. Indeed, the Royal Library has since garnered heavy criticism from the media and from historians over its decision. Nielsen, however, has denied that the institution buckled under pressure from Turkey.

“We have simply given them the opportunity to show their alternative exhibition,” he said. So, for now, it is business as usual. The exhibition is still scheduled.