Author: Lilit Nahapetian

Photo: AP

 

German police are hunting for the perpetrator of the truck attack at a Berlin market which killed 12, the BBC reprts.

Police released the only detained suspect on Tuesday, saying there was not enough evidence to hold him.

They now say more than one attacker may be on the run, possibly armed, and security has been stepped up in the German capital.

So-called Islamic State (IS) said one of its militants carried out the attack, but offered no evidence.

The former suspect, a Pakistani national named Naved B, had denied any connection with the attack. He was released by authorities who said there was no evidence he was involved.

Police said there were no forensic clues to link him to the vehicle, and had expressed doubt about his involvement soon after his arrest.

Asbarez – A organized by human rights group Freedom Now was held on December 14 outside a Hannakuh party hosted by Ilham Aliyev’s Azerbaijani regime at Trump International Hotel – to “highlight the continued repression of civil society and independent voices in Azerbaijan.”

The controversial party – which has been sharply criticized in both the Jewish American and Israeli press – was co-hosted by the Embassy of Azerbaijan, Washington, D.C. and the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations to celebrate “religious freedom and diversity.”

“We strongly condemn Azerbaijan’s egregious violations of human rights,” said Freedom Now founder Jared Genser. “Hanukkah is the story of good triumphing over evil and the rededication of the Holy Temple. If Jewish leaders attend this celebration, they should take the opportunity to perform the mitzvah rabah (great deed) of pidyon shivuyim (redemption of captives) and urge Ambassador Elin Suleymanov to have his government release its political prisoners.” Earlier this week, Genser had an in The Forward entitled “A Hanukkah Freedom Party With Human Rights Violators” about this event.

“Activists who protest the government’s religion policy are often arrested and given lengthy prison terms based on false charges. Azerbaijan’s lack of respect for religious freedom has prompted the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom to categorize it as a Tier 2 country, indicating serious violations,” read Freedom Now’s press statement on the protest. “Other countries in this category include Afghanistan, Cuba, Russia, and Turkey.”

Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan received today Argentine Armenian businessman Eduardo Eurnekian.

The Prime Minister hailed Eduardo Eurnekian’s activity in our country, noting that he’s one of the largest and most successful investors in the Armenian economy. He pledged the willingness of the government to maintain the effective cooperation.

Karen Karapetyan and Eduardo Eurnekian exchanged views on the ongoing programs in Armenia, as well as the perspectives of launching new projects. In particular, the interlocutors discussed issues related to the construction of a solar station in Armavir province and an Hydro Power Plant in Meghri, development of infrastructures of Zvartnots and Shirak Airports and promotion of tourism, investment in the former building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Prime Minister presented the steps being taken towards the development of Armenia and its economy and informed about the government’s plans to establish a Center of Strategic Initiatives that will serve as a platform for the implementation of joint programs under the state-private sector cooperation.

Karen Karapetyan noted that the government attaches importance to the permanent contacts with investors and businessmen and is open for discussion of issues of reciprocal interest and creation of a convenient business climate.

Welcoming the reforms undertaken by the government, Mr. Eurnekian said he’ll keep implementing investment programs in Armenia and voiced willingness to engage in the work of the Center of Strategic Initiatives.

Justin Trudeau wiped away tears during a roundtable with Syrian refugees and sponsors, as one newcomer recalled being greeted by the prime minister when he arrived in Canada one year ago, reports.

Trudeau and Vanig Garabedian were among a small group of people who gathered at a Toronto restaurant last week to reflect on the first year of the Syrian refugee program.

Addressing the prime minister, Garabedian recalled the moment last December when he stepped onto a Toronto-bound plane in Beirut, Lebanon, and shook the hand of a Canadian who was greeting passengers as they boarded.

“He shook hands with me and said, ‘Go and make Canada a better place.’ So that was the very last person I shook hands with in the Middle East. Then we landed at Pearson airport, and the very first person we shook hands was the prime minister,” Garabedian said, prompting Trudeau to grab a napkin off the table and wipe his eyes.

Garabedian said landing in Toronto not only meant that he and his wife — as well as their daughters — were safe, it also meant they had taken on “the responsibility of joining the Canadian family and trying to build this Canada, this country, this great nation.

“When I met Mr. Prime Minister at that moment, he said two words: ‘Welcome home.’ So imagine you are living in a warzone, you are leaving your home and you are welcomed by two words: welcome home,” said Garabedian, a gynecologist by trade.

“So my memories of that moment went back to Syria before war, our life, our happiness there, and the horrible moments we went through during war. So I felt myself that I’m proud to be here.”

Trudeau noted that he had only been on the job for about a month, and throughout the federal election campaign Canadians’ expressed interest in doing more to help refugees.

“I felt that being there in the name of all Canadians to welcome people was really important,” he said.

He also said the Syrian refugee issue reminded him of the power of the office of prime minister, noting the legacy of his father’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the legacy of the prime ministers who came before him.

“Watching you and your girls walk through this airport toward me was a moment in which I understood just the kinds of things that we can do as a country and that I get to help this country do,” he said.

“You wouldn’t have been walking on Canadian soil that night if I hadn’t said, ‘We can do this together’ and made it done. And that for me was as strong and clear a reinforcement that I was going to be okay in this job. It was, on a personal level, it was very, very touching for me.”

Turkey welcomes Russia’s efforts towards settlement of the Karabakh issue, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said after talks with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Antalya, Ermenihaber.am reports, quoting the Turkish Haberler.

“Today we discussed regional issues. Many issues will find their solution if Turkey and Russia work together,” Cavusoglu said at a joint press conference.

“Russia is taking efforts towards settlement of the Karabakh issue and other problems between Armenia and Azerbaijan, in general. We welcome and support those efforts. We are ready to make our contribution,” Cavusoglu added.

Jose Mourinho and Henrikh Mkhitaryan were snapped leaving the Lowry Hotel this morning after Manchester United’s stalemate with Liverpool last night, reports.

Manchester United were held to a goalless draw at Anfield and Mourinho looked a little worse for wear the morning after.

The Old Trafford boss was seen getting into a waiting car complete with a personalised ‘JM’ backpack before being whisked away to Manchester United’s Carrington training ground.

Henrikh Mkhitaryan was also snapped leaving the Lowry as he too headed off to training sporting a white BALR hoodie, dark jeans and black wash bag.

Tumi, a village in Artsakh’s Hadrut Region, is the site of the latest multifunctional community center to be built by the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund. The project is sponsored by the fund’s French affiliate, with additional support from the government of Artsakh.

Within the last three years, along with other infrastructures, a dozen of similar community centers have been built in Artsakh with the financial assistance of French-Armenians. Ara Vardanyan, the executive director of the Hayastan All-Armenian Fund, said that ongoing French-Armenian support for the construction of such centers is a testament to the immense improvements they have brought to the daily lives of communities across Artsakh.

The future two-storey community center of Tumi will house key civic and cultural facilities including the mayor’s office, a medical clinic, a library, a game room, a computer room, and a 150-seat hall designed for a broad range of arts events and gatherings.

Commenting on the benefits that the community center will bring, Tumi mayor Edik Mosiyan said, “Given our community’s considerable distance from Hadrut City, the closest metropolitan area, our existing medical clinic must often provide the services of a maternity ward as well, which is why it’s doubly important to have a truly modern clinic. As for community events, we sorely lack a proper space, because our former club is now so run-down that it’s no longer usable.”

Previous Hayastan All-Armenian Fund development projects implemented in Tumi, which has a population of 768, include the reconstruction of the community’s water network, and the furnishing of its school and kindergarten.

Tumi is located 31 kilometers from Hadrut City, the regional center. The community is home to a number of historic and cultural monuments, and the remains of various other antiquities.

Armenia’s Civil Court of Appeal has rejected a motion by the country’s prosecutors against the release of Russian national Sergei Mironov, sought by US authorities on suspicion of money laundering and illegal technology transfer, Sputnik News reports, quoting a source in the Armenian Prosecutor General’s Office.

Mironov, 30, was detained in Yerevan airport on August 26, but was released on August 29 on a ruling by a Yerevan district court and returned to Russia on August 31.

The Armenian prosecutors appealed the court’s decision in the country’s top appellate court. Mironov’s defense  earlier insisted that Mironov, employed at the Moscow office of the Synesis intelligent video surveillance developer, had no access to military technology and had visited the United States only once in 2013.

On 8 September  President Bako Sahakyan was present at public prayer for the Fatherland served by Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians Garegin II at the Shoushi Ghazanchetsots cathedral of Christ the Savior, NKR President’s Press Office reported.

Chairman of the NKR National Assembly Ashot Ghoulyan, other high-ranked official, representatives from Armenia and Diaspora partook at the event.

Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili visited the Tsitsernakaberd Memorial today to pay tribute to the memory of the Armenian Genocide victims.

The Prime Minister laid a wreath at the memorial, toured the Armenian Genocide Museum-Institute and left a note in the guest book.

Giorgi Kvirikkashvili also planted a fir tree at the Memory Alley.