The California
Courier Online, March 16, 2023
1- Truth is
Stranger Than Fiction: Israel’s
Ambassador
to Azerbaijan
is an Armenian
By Harut
Sassounian
Publisher,
The California
Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
2- Mexican
Armenians Express Gratitude for Senate Recognition of Genocide
3- Storica
Wines, Carnival Cruise Line Partner to Bring Armenian Wine to Travelers
4- Armenian
Patriarch congratulates Pope on 10th anniversary
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1- Truth is
Stranger Than Fiction: Israel’s
Ambassador
to Azerbaijan
is an Armenian
By Harut
Sassounian
Publisher,
The California
Courier
www.TheCaliforniaCourier.com
When I first heard that Israel’s
Ambassador to Azerbaijan,
George Deek, is an Armenian, I thought that it can’t be true. However, I was
astonished to find out that it was correct. As Mark Twain said: “Truth is
stranger than fiction!”
Long before he became Israel’s
Ambassador to Baku,
Deek tweeted: “My father's grandmother's name was Antaraan Hambarian, an
Armenian. She is a survivor of the Armenian tragedy of…
http://fb.me/2WQnyz9Vu. 8:43 AM. Apr 12, 2015.”
The Facebook link Deek included in his tweet was significant
because it referred to an April 12, 2015 article titled: “Turkey angry at
pope after ‘genocide’ remarks.” So Deek was aware that there was an Armenian
Genocide, his father’s grandmother was a survivor of that Genocide, and her
name was Antaraan Hamparian, even though he misspelled her first name which was
most probably Antaram.
After Deek became Israel’s
Ambassador to Azerbaijan
in 2019, several Armenians angrily criticized him for referring to the Armenian
Genocide as a ‘tragedy’ in his 2015 tweet. Here are some of the disparaging
replies: “Will you survive betrayal of your ancestors?” “She would be proud of
you… serving two countries actively denying the very thing that robbed her of
her own family,” “Probably she would be greatly ashamed of you,” “Your poor
grandmother is turning in her grave, sorry you condone ethnic cleansing, war
crimes, and genocide,” “I can’t believe you have Armenian roots! SHAME ON YOU
1,500,000 times then, for SUPPORTING TERRORISTS Azerbaijan
and Turkey!
IT’S A SHAME FOR US THAT YOU HAVE ARMENIAN BLOOD IN YOUR VEINS!” and “Your
great grandmother will spit on your face if she would hear what you say!”
On Sept. 30, 2021, the ANCA (Armenian National Committee of
America) posted on its Facebook page: “Most shameful diplomatic appointment in
the history of diplomacy. Genocide survivor state Israel
sending George Deek (a self-described ethnic Armenian descendant of Armenian
Genocide survivors) as its ambassador to Azerbaijan, a country openly working
to complete this crime.”
In July 2021, Deek angered Armenians again by tweeting:
“Together with the diplomatic corps in Azerbaijan,
I had the historic privilege of being the first Israeli Ambassador to visit the
remarkable city of Shusha,” a noteworthy
Armenian town captured by Azerbaijan
during the 2020 war.
In an interview with The Times of Israel on January 13,
2023, Amb. Deek described himself as ‘an Arab and an Israeli.’ His father was
an Orthodox Christian of mixed Armenian and Palestinian roots. Here is an
excerpt from that interview:
The Times of Israel:
“When you meet Azeris and they discover you’re an Arab Christian, what kind of
reactions do you get?”
Amb. Deek: “Naturally, it’s surprising and confusing for
most Azeris. The sense of surprise is great for helping me explain about the
diversity of Israeli society. But frankly, at this point, I’ve stopped
correcting them because it gets tiring. It’s still funny when on December 24,
they still wish me a Happy Hanukkah rather than Merry Christmas.”
The Times of Israel:
“As an Israeli Christian, what’s your perspective on the Armenian community —
which consists mainly of fellow Israeli Christians — and the challenges they
face in Israel,
both in connection with the Jerusalem-Baku relationship and with other
non-related issues?”
Amb. Deek: “I have deep sympathy for the Armenian community
in Israel, and specifically
in Jaffa, where
I grew up. We share the same faith and many cultural traditions. Many of my
friends from school and from youth movements are Armenian. I had teachers who
influenced me immensely who are Armenian, and I consider them as close
friends.”
On January 5, 2023, the Azeri Caliber.az website quoted Amb.
Deek as declaring: “Israel
is proposing its assistance to Azerbaijan
in the setting up of ‘smart cities’ in Armenian districts occupied by Azerbaijan.”
On January 12, 2023, Amb. Deek was interviewed by Caliber.az
on video which was titled, “Beyond the visible: Excavating the depths of
Israeli-Azerbaijani ties with Ambassador George Deek.”
In that interview, Amb. Deek made the following alarming
statement: “The most important event is when Azerbaijan
entered the second Karabakh war and we [Israel]
have been here standing shoulder to shoulder with our partner and friend Azerbaijan. Our
strategic cooperation continued and intensified during that period but also on
the humanitarian field. The fact that I took the risk to go to Ganja in the
middle of the attacks on the city and to talk to the local community, to meet
them, to provide humanitarian support with equipment like basic things from
blankets and heaters and so on to people who lost their homes and everything
they could. And I think that created also the connection in the hearts, not
just in the minds, so I think the second Karabakh war showed Azerbaijan what
we mean when we say friend, what we mean when we say partner. For us these are
not empty words of diplomats…. These are things that come from the heart and
they actually have a strong meaning for us…. Israel’s position has been clear
about the Karabakh issue for a long time. Israel
supports Azerbaijan’s
territorial integrity. It has done so in words and in deeds before the second
Karabakh war and after the second Karabakh war.”
He also wrongly added that “practically, the Arab-Israeli
conflict is basically over.” Amb. Deek not only does not have respect for his
Armenian heritage, he also has no respect for his Palestinian heritage. He must
have sold his soul to the devil for his job.
The most astounding aspect of Amb. Deek’s appointment is
that Israel’s Foreign
Ministry officials sent an envoy with an Armenian background to Azerbaijan!
Despite Amb. Deek’s effusive words about Azerbaijan,
I doubt whether Pres. Aliyev and the people of Azerbaijan fully trust him. In Azerbaijan,
they have nothing but hatred and contempt for any Armenian, even those who are
partly Armenian.
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2- Mexican Armenians Express
Gratitude for Senate Recognition of Genocide
By Carlos Antaramián
MEXICO CITY (The Armenian Mirror-Spectator)—On February 18,
members of the Armenian community in Mexico gathered at the “Armenian Clock” in
Mexico City to pay tribute to the martyrs of 1915, and also to give thanks for
the recognition by the Senate of Mexico of this genocide.
With Armenians from France,
Venezuela, Cyprus, Armenia
and also with the participation of Peter Balakian, Pulitzer Prize winning poet
and professor at Colgate University in the United
States, the assembled remembered their ancestors
massacred by the government of the young Turks in the Ottoman
Empire between 1915 and 1918. In Mexico,
although the Armenians can trace their origins in this country back to the 18th
century, the vast majority arrived as refugees as a result of the genocide and
settled between 1923 and 1928 in Mexico City or Tijuana and rebuilt their
lives, establishing a small but thriving community.
Mexican Armenians have sought for many years for the Mexican
government to recognize the Armenian Genocide, as Uruguay
did in 1965 and recently the president of the United States in 2021. The
architect of this new initiative was Armen Yeritsian and the senator for the
northern state of Baja California Alejandra León Gastelum (currently of the
“Citizen Movement” Party), who since April 2022 together with the “Plural
Group” presented a Point of Agreement in the Senate of Mexico to recognize the
Genocide. This proposal was passed to the plenary session of the Senate for its
vote on February 8, 2023 and that same day it was voted on unanimously.
After the offering deposited in the fountain of the Armenian
Clock, the group participated in a toast at the Sahaguian family’s house, where
the community thanked Yeritsian for his work in pursuit of the
recognition. There, Peter Balakian
emphasized the role that educating US legislators has had on the issue of
genocide and how, little by little, this worked. Meanwhile, congressmen have
lost their fear of confronting the powerful Turkish lobby that denies the
Armenian genocide. The same process, without a doubt, has also happened in Mexico. Mexican
society itself has changed, with, for example, the Mexican president
apologizing in 2021 for a massacre of Chinese and Japanese conducted in 1911 in
the northern Mexican city of Torreón. Legislators are no longer afraid to raise
their voices in pursuit of the truth and against the denialist campaign of the
Turkish state. This is what these commemorations and recognitions are for—to
prevent these atrocities from happening again.
At the conclusion of the gathering, Balakian reading his
poem “After the Survivors Are Gone.”
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3- Storica Wines, Carnival Cruise
Line Partner to Bring Armenian Wine to Travelers
BOSTON—Carnival Cruise Line, known as America’s Cruise Line,
has selected three wines from Storica Wines’ award-winning portfolio—Keush
Origins Brut NV, Shofer Areni Rose, and Voskevaz Karasi Haghtanak—for its
2023-2024 wine program. This marks the first time that an Armenian wine has
been carried on a major cruise line operators’ fleet.
All three wines will be listed by-the-bottle across all 24
ships in Carnival’s North American fleet in the ships’ main dining rooms and
steakhouse. Keush Origins NV will be listed by-the-glass in the steakhouses,
along with Shofer Areni Rose by-the-glass in the main dining rooms.
Additionally, Carnival Celebration, Carnival’s newest and most innovative ship,
will serve both Keush Origins Brut
NV and Shofer Areni Rose
by-the-glass at its Latitudes Bar.
“This partnership marks a major milestone for our company
and for the wine region of Armenia.
We are thrilled to be a part of Carnival’s wine program and are humbled by the
way their team has embraced our wines and the story of Armenia’s rich
ancient heritage in winemaking and its present-day renaissance,” said Zack
Armen, co-Founder and President of Storica Wines.
“Working with Storica to bring these quality wines on board
for our guests will enrich our wine offering overall. The story of Armenia’s
6,100-year tradition in winemaking brings our guests who love wine a
fascinating and deep history that I know they will appreciate along with these
fresh flavors,” said Zachary Sulkes, Senior Director of Beverage Operations for
Carnival Cruise Line.
Keush Origins Brut NV, a champagne-method sparkling wine
made from two grapes from Armenia’s
Vayots Dzor region, has garnered significant accolades from wine critics,
including a 91-point rating from Jeb Dunnuck. Shofer, a “made-by-Storica”
private label brand, is led by its 90+ rated Areni Rose, made from Armenia’s
leading Areni red grape. Voskevaz Winery’s Karasi collection features the rare,
ancient clay pot, or “karas,” fermentation method. Its Haghtanak, meaning
“victory” in Armenian, is a bold red wine that pairs well with red meats.
All three wines are currently being sold across Carnival
Cruise Line’s North American fleet, which operates from 14 homeports.
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4- Armenian Patriarch
congratulates Pope on 10th anniversary
By Joseph Tulloch
Exactly ten years ago, Jorge Maria Bergoglio became Pope
Francis. Over the past few days, congratulations from religious leaders, both
inside and outside the Catholic Church, have been pouring in from all over the
world. On March 13, they were joined by the Council of European Bishops
Conferences, the Patriarch of the Armenian Catholic Church, and the Presidency
of the Italian Bishops Conference.
Patriarch Raphaël Bedros XXI Minassian, head of the Armenian
Catholic Church, recalled the gestures of friendship Pope Francis has made
toward the West Asian country.
The Patriarch emphasized, in particular, his visit to Armenia, his
proclamation of the Armenian Saint Gregory Narek as a Doctor of the Church, and
his remembrance of the victims of the Armenian genocide.
The ten years of Pope Francis’ pontificate, he said, “have
been ten years in which the Armenian people—not just Catholics, but Orthodox
and Protestants too—have felt closer to the heart of the successor of Peter.”
The Holy Father’s visit to Armenia
in 2016, Patriarch Minassian said, was thus “pastoral and ecumenical at the
same time.”
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