YEREVAN. – President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan on Monday made a press statement concerning the events in Syria’s predominantly Armenian-populated town of Kessab at the World Forum Convention Center in The Hague.
The President expressed his deep concern over the events in Kessab. “All of us perfectly remember the history of Kessab, which was unfortunately, full of hellish realities deportations in the last century,” said Serzh Sargsyan, informed the Press Office of the President.
The President of Armenia reminded that the first scourge was back in April 1909 when the Turkish armed detachments invaded Kessab. The Armenians took shelter in mountain Karadouran and on the coast. After setting Kessab on fire and plundering it, Turks made their way to Karadouran, burned and looted the houses of the upper district. A French ship transported Armenians to Latakia. After living in Latakia for one year, the emigrants returned to Kessab and reconstructed their houses.
When touching upon the historical facts Serzh Sargsyan also recalled another date – events of 1915, when the Kessab population also experienced migration and exiles of the Armenian Genocide. Armenians of Kessab were exiled in two directions: to Der Zor and to the south up to Jordan. Thousands died en route, the majority perished in Deir Zor Desert.
“The third deportation of Kessab Armenians today is a serious challenge to ethnic minority rights’ protection mechanisms of the 21st century. I think that everyone should realize that these parallels should sober all the sides”, underlined the President of Armenia.
President thanked the Syrian authorities for the steps being taken to protect the Armenians in Kessab at this difficult moment.
“I have already instructed the diplomatic missions at the UN Headquarters in New-York and Geneva to raise the issue of ensuring the security of the Armenians in Kessab and their safe return to their permanent places of residence at the structures dealing with human rights and ethnic minorities,” said President Sargsyan.
President of Armenia also had consultation with the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram I in connection with the current situation.
President Serzh Sargsyan assured that the Embassy of the Republic of Armenia in Syria worked on the program of measures to support the Armenians in Kessab. The program will be implemented in a full scale.
In the early morning on March 21, armed militants from the Jabhat al-Nusra Islamic terrorist group infiltrated into northern Syria’s Latakia Governorate, which is predominantly inhabited by Armenians and Alawites. Two large groups of terrorists had launched the attack from Turkey. Numerous displaced Kessab Armenians are currently sheltered in Latakia city. On Sunday, Turkish fighter planes downed in Kessab a Syrian military aircraft that was conducting a mission against the Islamic terrorists. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad promised Catholicos Aram I of the Great House of Cilicia of the Armenian Apostolic Church to do everything possible to protect the Armenians in Kessab.
