NEWS

HDP Istanbul Member of Parliament Sırrı Süreyya Önder announced that Abdullah Öcalan has made a call to the PKK to hold congress in the spring for disarmament.

Former General Directorate of Security Intelligence Agency Director Ramazan Akyürek, detained within the scope of the Hrant Dink murder investigation, arrested.

Media in Armenia and the Diaspora have been rocked by the claim of Nabil Na’eem, the founder of the Democratic Jihad Party in Egypt, who stated that the Muslim Brotherhood received a payment from Turkey to incinerate documents related to the Armenian Genocide. There was a fire at the building where the documents are held; however Armenians in Egypt treat the claims with caution.

Following the evacuation on the night of 21 February Saturday by military operation of the Suleyman Shah Tomb and the affiliated Commemoration Station, the only piece of land that belongs to Turkey that lies outside of its borders, attention is now focused on the Eşme region in Syria, officially announced as the new location for the tomb. However, the region Ankara has declared as the new destination of the “heritage of forefathers” was along the deportation route of the Armenian Genocide a century ago.

The Ankara Metropolitan Municipality has now ventured into the “Armenian Question”. On February 14, the Municipal Council issued a decision to purchase books and brochures on the “Armenian Question” to be distributed to various institutions.

The race code procedure implemented by the Ministry of National Education for student registration at non-Muslim schools has been subject to another lawsuit.

The State of Turkey, after having seized a building that belongs to the Bulgarian Exarchate Orthodox Church Foundation, is now demanding a fee in return for occupying the building for 3 years –after returning the building to the foundation. The Treasury has issued a 50 thousand TL fine to the foundation.

People continue their struggle to survive in Kessab, a town on the border of Syria with Turkey in the Hatay province area. Following the occupation of the town by Al-Nusra forces last year, the Armenians in the town had been dispersed, with most of them coming to Vakıflı Village in Hatay, and had returned after the Syrian army had retaken the town. However, the people of Kessab now face the threat of ISIS.

We spoke about Turks, Armenians, Turkey and the Diaspora with Arsinée Khanjian, the Canadian actress who is one of the three jury members of the international ‘Love & Change’ competition of the 14th !f International Film Festival.

Aybüke Ekici, General Secretary of the International Refugee Rights Association, has expressed concern over allegations that some Ozbek refugees may have been sent from Suruç to areas under the control of ISIS. Ekici added that they had received reports that ISIS was executing refugees that refused to join them.