Author: Arbi Tashjian

An Illinois couple married for 69 years have died with an hour of each other, family members tell US media, the BBC reports.

Isaac Vatkin, 91, was holding the hand of his wife Teresa, 89, as she succumbed to Alzheimer’s disease on Saturday, the Daily Herald reported.

Isaac died 40 minutes later. Family members said they took comfort in knowing they were together at the end.

“You didn’t want to see them go,” said grandson William Vatkin, “but you couldn’t ask for anything more.”

“Their love for each other was so strong, they simply could not live without each other,” said daughter Clara Gesklin at the couple’s joint funeral.

One policeman has been shot dead and a second wounded in central Paris, French police say, with reports that a gunman was later killed, the BBC reports.

The Champs Elysees, where the shooting occurred, was sealed off. No motive for the attack has yet been reported.

It happened as candidates made their last pitches in a TV appearance before Sunday’s presidential election.

Police sources quoted by Reuters news agency say it may have been an attempted armed robbery.

The whole of the Champs Elysees has been evacuated and police vehicles are lined up near a point half way up the avenue around the George V metro station, our correspondent says.

Shots were heard around 21:00 (19:00 GMT) in or near the Marks & Spencer store, provoking a panicked rush away from the scene by tourists and passers-by.

Photo: AFP

 

Syria’s President Bashar-al Assad says reports of a chemical attack by his forces were “100% fabrication”.

In an exclusive video interview with Agence France-Presse, he said “there was no order to make any attack”.

Mr Assad told the AFP news agency that the Syrian government had given up its arsenal of chemical weapons in 2013, adding “even if we have them, we wouldn’t use them”.

Mr Assad accused the West of making up the story so it had an excuse to carry out the strikes on a Syrian government airbase, which took place a few days after the Khan Sheikhoun attack.

“It’s stage one, the play [they staged] that we saw on social network and TVs, then propaganda and then stage two, the military attack,” he said, questioning the authenticity of the video footage.

Mr Assad also said that he would only allow what he called an “impartial” investigation into the events at Khan Sheikhoun, to ensure it would not be used for “politicised purposes”.

More than 80 people were killed in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun on 4 April, and hundreds suffered symptoms consistent with a nerve agent.

Armenian American actress, singer and author Cher has joined the anti-genocide call to action connected to “The Promise” film.

“Hitler said if they don’t remember the Armenians, they will not remember the Jews. We cannot let this happen to another group of people. I vow to keep the promise,” Cher says in a video shared on Twitter.

I vow to ?? 4/21 ?

— Cher (@cher)

Armenian Genocide film The Promise will be released in mainstream theaters across the United States and Canada on April 21.

Produced by the legendary Kirk Kerkorian’s Survival Pictures and directed by Academy Award winner Terry George (Hotel Rwanda), The Promise features an outstanding international cast, including Oscar Isaac, Charlotte Le Bon, Christian Bale, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Angela Sarafyan, and many more.

All proceeds from the film will be donated to non-profit organizations, the first time for a film of this scale.

The Armenia Airline operated the maiden Yerevan-Beirut flight today, Satenik Hovhannisyan, Press Secretary of the General department of Civil Aviation of Armenia informs in a Facebook page.

The first passengers flew to Lebanon’s capital in a Boeing 737-500.

There is no visa regime in place between Armenia and Lebanon.

On March 30, in the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, under the presidency of His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians; a Supreme Spiritual Council meeting was held, during which they considered the recent developments concerning the Patriarchal Locum Tenens election in the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople.

The Catholicos of All Armenians reflected on the current situation, and informed the members of a letter sent to Echmiadzin on 24 March, by Rev. Fr. Yegishe Uchqounian, Chairman of the Patriarchate Clerical Assembly; and Rev. Fr. Drtad Ouzounian, through which they officially informed His Holiness on the election of His Eminence Archbishop Karekin Bekchian as Patriarchal Locum Tenens in the Patriarchate on March 15.

At the end of discussions, His Holiness announced his decision to bless the choice of the Patriarchal Locum Tenens, which was welcomed by the members of the Supreme Spiritual Council.

On the same day, His Holiness Karekin II, sent a letter to the Chancellor of the Clerical Assembly of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople.

“From the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, we convey our Pontifical blessing to the elected Patriarchal Locum Tenens of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople, the clergymen and all our faithful Armenian children from Constantinople.

We urge you, that with the spirit of love and wisdom, to overcome the current problems and obstacles, and according to Church laws and rules, find better solutions to conduct the Patriarchal election, for the benefit of restoration of peace and solidarity for the Armenians of Constantinople”, stated His Holiness, and asked God’s support for the clergy of the See of Patriarchate of Constantinople in their spiritual service.

Lawyer Sebu Aslangil says Istanbul Governor’s interference with the patriarchal elections is “completely unlawful.”

According to him, the administration doesn’t have the authority.”

On March 15, the Clerical Assembly in Istanbul elected Karekin Bekdjian, Primate of the German Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church as Locum Tenens (Patriarchal alternate).

Following the election, a notice was handed out by Archbishop Aram Ateshian to the Clerical Assembly that stated that it was illegal to start the election process.

“Only the Armenian society has the authority to start the election process. Clerical Assembly started the process with the decision it made on October 16. It decided to elect Locum Tenens and realized the decision. If the administration wanted to interfere, it should have done so after this decision. It would make more sense if it stated, ‘This decision is not proper.’ However, by saying nothing about it, it legally and virtually accepted the procedure,” Sebu Aslangil said in a statement published by .

“Given that no complaint has been made to the administration, it is impossible to talk about such a disturbance. This reason cannot constitute a ground for thinking that the election won’t be right. They could have interfered after what happened on February 16. The governor’s office hasn’t done that either. This notice is arbitrary. The election conforms to the proceedings and traditions. Starting the election is quite lawful,” the lawyer said.

“On this point, we can talk about the scope of influence of the General Vicar. According to our traditions, the v doesn’t have the authority to start election. There is also no regulation concerning the limits of the Vicar’s authority. Thus, the General Vicar doesn’t have the authority to stop the process of election. The existence of vicar doesn’t have anything to do with the process of election,” he added.

Aslangil also pointed out that there is a pending case concerning the vicarship in the constitutional court and this seat is not legally confirmed yet.

This April, public television stations across the United States will premiere They shall not perish: The Story of Near East Relief. The documentary is produced by Shant Mardirossian and award-winning writer/director George Billard, the reports.

They Shall Not Perish details the unprecedented humanitarian efforts of thousands of Americans who saved a generation of orphans and refugees after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire during and after World War I.

The one-hour documentary film features the stories of American diplomats, missionaries and relief workers who, as witnesses to the Armenian Genocide, responded to a call to action and mobilized the largest non-governmental international humanitarian movement undertaken by American citizens. Motivated by nothing but a moral sense of duty, these men and women – among them industrialists, ambassadors, teachers, nurses, advertisers and Presidents – helped bring care and comfort to millions of suffering refugees in extremely harrowing circumstances.

Narrated by six-time Emmy award nominated actor Victor Garber, the film is set against a mix of historical footage, archival photographs and utilizes contemporary interviews from leading academic experts such as Taner Akçam, Peter Balakian and Keith David Watenpaugh. In addition, the letters of American officials, relief workers and orphans are brought to life through the voices of leading actors – Michael Aronov, Kathleen Chalfant, Dariush Kashani, Andrea Martin, Ron Rifkin, Tony Shalhoub and Kara Vedder – taking the audience on a journey from the depths of cruelty to the triumphs of survival.

Executive Producer Shant Mardirossian, inspired by his grandparents’ escape and survival during the genocide, says he produced this film “not just to remember those we lost in the genocide, but to shed light on an important chapter of American history when ordinary citizens stood together against a great injustice and saved the lives of 132,000 orphans.” These historic rescue efforts led to the formation of the Near East Relief – known today as the Near East Foundation – an organization that continues to help improve the lives of vulnerable communities and refugees throughout the Middle East and Africa by implementing innovative, community-led economic development initiatives.

With a focus on an often forgotten yet important chapter in American history, They Shall Not Perish challenges the notion of what values a nation should aspire to demonstrate, and raises the question of when and if humanitarian concerns should override strategic national interests. “Today, as we confront an exploding refugee crisis, it’s imperative that we consider the humanitarian consequences when formulating U.S. foreign policy”, says the film’s director, producer and writer George Billard.

Distributed nationally by 3 Roads Communications, They Shall Not Perish premieres on public television stations nationwide beginning April 1, 2017.

The official premiere and discussion with the filmmakers will take place on April 8, 2017 at the Times Center.

The Foreign Ministers of Armenia and Russia will discuss a wide range of issues of bilateral cooperation, as well as regional and international politics on February 22, Press Service of the Russian Foreign Ministry has said, noting that “Armenia and Russia share a common stance on a number of issues on international and regional agenda.”

Armenian Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian will visit Moscow from February 20-22. “The visit will be the logical continuation of the rich Russian-Armenian dialogue targeted at the further development of close cooperation in political, economic and humanitarian fields,” the Ministry said.

Armenia and Russia will mark the 25^th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations on March 3.

Photo: Reuters

 

At least four people have died in an avalanche at a ski resort in Tignes in eastern France, rescue services say, the BBC reports.

Nine people were buried by the snow after the avalanche swept through an off-piste area of the resort, which lies close to the Italian border.

Two people were pulled out alive, the rescuers said, while three remain unaccounted for.

The avalanche was reportedly 400 metres (1,300ft) wide and occurred at an altitude of 2,100 metres.

It struck during a particularly busy time for the resort, at the beginning of the half-term school holiday.