DeFacto Agency, Armenia
March 7 2008
CONDEMN GENOCIDE OF YEZIDIS IN OSMANIAN EMPIRE
YEREVAN, 07.03.08. DE FACTO. In 1915-1918 the upper circles of
Osmanian Empire, taking advantage of the conditions of the World War,
organized and realized genocide of Turkey’s national minorities.
During a few years Osmanian Empire actually completely slaughtered
the native peoples of the country: Armenians, Assyrians, and Greeks.
Nowadays the world is aware of numerous facts and details of these
terrible atrocities committed by Turkey’s authorities endowed with
state power. The world’s most progressive countries condemned the
Armenian Genocide in Osmanian Empire on the state level and mark
mournful data of the Genocide’s beginning together with Armenians,
Greeks and Assyrians.
However, in this sorrowful list of peoples destroyed by Turks
Yezidis, a distinctive and native nation on the territory of Osmanian
Empire, are actually never mentioned. Meanwhile, even an incomplete
list of settlements of Yezdistan (a territory in the north of Iraq),
where Turkish vandals slaughtered Yezidis, is quite and quite
impressive: Sinjar, Sinoun, Gobal, Dgour, Gali Ali Bage, Dhok,
Zorava, Karse and Bare, Siba, Tlizer, Tlzafe, Khrbade Kavala, Grzark,
Rmbousi, Sharok, Tlkazar, Tlbanta, Kocho, Khotmi, Mosoul, Rndavan,
Amadia. Over 200,000 Yezidis were slaughtered in these settlements.
Yezidis were also destroyed by Turkish soldiers on the territory of
Western Armenia, where they had been living in harmony with Armenians
for ages. Below is the mournful list: Van region – 100,000 innocent
victims; Moush region – over 60,000 victims; Erzroum region – 7,500
victims; Kars region – 5,000 victims, Sourmalu – 10,000 Yezidi
victims… The list is never-ending and tragic.
Side by side with deportation and massacre the Turkish government
forcibly turned Yezidis, who profess original religion connected with
worship of the Sun, into Islam. The Turkish historiographer Katib
Tchelebi states that in 1915-1918 about 300,000 Yezidis were
massacred on the territory of Osmanian Empire. However, according to
verified data, those years over 500,000 Yezidis were slaughtered by
Turkish and Kurd barbarians, and this sinister fact has not been
condemned by the progressive countries of the world.
Undoubtedly, politicians and specialists must know how many Yezidis
became the victims of the Turkish state in various settlements.
Before the beginning of the World War I, according to the sources,
over 750,000 Yezidis resided on the territory of Osmanian Empire, and
over 500,000 of them were massacred by Turks. 250,000 more were
forcibly deported and found shelter:
1. in Iraq, in the vicinity of Sinjar Mountain, 100,000.
2. in Turkey, in the regions of Batman and Diarbeqir, 12,000.
3. in Syria, in the settlement of El-Kamishli, 15,000.
4. in Armenia, 12,500.
5. in Georgia, 3,000.
Nowadays the Yezidi people scattered by the whole territory of
Northern Asia and Near East require the reestablishment of justice
and recognition of events of 1915-1918 as Genocide. We are convinced:
defiance of historic crimes against mankind will inevitably result in
a precedent for new crimes. Actually, it is already taking place. In
August and September of 2007 over a thousand of innocent Yezidis,
peaceful inhabitant of the region, were destroyed in the north of
Iraq, in historical Yezdistan.
We appeal to the U. N., the U. N. Security Council, Presidents of the
U. S. and Russia, heads of the European states, President of Turkey
and urge:
To restore historical justice and condemn the genocide of Yezidi
people, which took place in Osmanian Empire in 1915-1918.
National Union of Yezidis of the world.
Chair – Aziz TAMOYAN – Doctor-Professor of history and theology.
Contacts:
E-mail:
[email protected]
Phone:
(+37491) 091-41-38-55
(+37491) 094-55-87-18
(+37491) 095-95-98-60
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
