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ATTACK on KESSAB the Last Chapter of the Armenian Genocide?

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ATTACK ON KESSAB The Last Chapter of the Armenian Genocide? Kessab is an Armenian-populated town in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Latakia Governorate, and located 59 kilometers north of the City of Latakia. It is situated right on the border with Turkey on the slope of Mount Casius (Mount Aqraa, meaning "the Hairless" or "the Bald"), 800 meters above sea level. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics in the 2004 census Kessab had a population of 1,754. With its dry climate and encircled by wooded green mountains and deep valleys, Kessab is a favored vacation resort for many of residents of Aleppo and Latakia. The name of the town, Kessab, is thought to be derived from the Latin expression Casa Bella (i.e. the Beautiful House). Kessab is an ancient Armenian town, which dates back to the period of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia. The population today is mainly Armenian with an Alawite Arab minority. The town is surrounded by small villages and farms with a majority of Armenians: Duzaghaj, Esguran, Sev Aghpyur, Chinar, Chakhaljekh, Keorkeuna, Ekizolukh, Baghjaghaz (Upper and Lower), Karadouran, Karadash and the abandoned village of Bashurd. With a height of 1105 meters above sea level, Mount Selderan located in the area of "Chalma Spring" is the highest peak of the Syrian side of Kessab region, while Mount Casius, the highest mountain with a height of 1709 meters above sea level, is located on the Turkish side a few meters away from the border-line. Karadouran beach is located on the border of Turkey and was once the border of the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, when the region of Kessab was gradually being developed by its Armenian settlers. A research conducted on the peculiarities of the Kessab Armenian dialect and the dialects of the Armenians in the region of Alexandretta and Suweidiyeh shows that the Armenians of Kessab and the surrounding villages are the remainders of Armenians who came from the region of Antioch. The migration of the Armenians to the region increased in the 14th and the 15th centuries, during the Mamluk and the Ottoman periods, in an attempt to avoid persecutions while trying to find safer mountainous regions such as Kessab and Musa Dagh. The first Armenian refugees settled in the area now called Esguran. After a period they moved uphill and settled in the area now called the town of Kessab, turning it to a center of the whole region. During the 1850s the population of Kessab region was around 6000 (all Armenians), with more than 20 schools. Armenian Evangelical “Missakian” Cultural Center The first disaster in Kessab happened in April 1909. This calamity cost the Armenians 161 deaths and a massive material loss. After the event, Catholicos Sahag I Khabaian visited Kessab. In 1915 Kessab was struck with yet another calamity at the same time that Armenians all over the Ottoman Empire were put to the sword and almost 1,5 million Armenians lost their lives. The whole population of Kessab and its surrounding Armenian villages was deported. About six thousand were deported to Deir ez Zor and Deir Atieh. Less than two thousand returned to homes and land that had been burnt and looted. These Armenians from Kessab were the only Armenians that were able to return to their own homestead and continue living there until, yes, until March 21, 2014 - the First Day of Spring! Yes, once more the Armenians of Kessab have had to face deportation and violence. On the 21st of March, 2014 almost to the day three years since the Syrian Civil War broke out, the population of Kessab and the surrounding villages was evacuated. 80 civilians were killed in the shelling and attacks carried out by al-Qaeda affiliated forces from inside Turkey. During the attack the rebel forces also attacked the Syrian Border Station right beside Kessab and killed some of the border personnel and others were taken hostage. Some 670 Armenian families, without anything but the clothes that they were wearing, were evacuated by the local Armenian community leadership to safer areas in neighboring Basit and Latakia. The latest Conflict of Kessab was the culmination of the Armenian Genocide for the Armenian Nation that had lived for almost one thousand years in Kessab. In a written statement, the Armenian denominational leaders condemned the attacks and Turkey’s active role in aiding and assisting extremist groups who in Kessab and in other parts of Syria have been attacking the Christian and minority populations of Syria. The statement from Kessab's Armenian Leadership read: “For months, we have warned the international community of the imminent threat posed by extremist foreign fighters against the Christian minority population in Syria. These vicious and unprovoked attacks against the Armenian-populated town and villages of Kessab are the latest examples of a violence not seen or heard since the Armenian Genocide of a century ago. What makes these acts of violence even worse is that they were actively encouraged by the neighboring state of Turkey. We call upon all states with any influence in the Syrian conflict to use all available means to stop these attacks against the peaceful civilian Armenian population of Kessab and to allow each family to return to their homes in safety and security. In the last one hundred years, this is the third time that the Armenians are being forced to leave Kessab and in all three cases Turkey is the aggressor or on the side of the aggressors.” Ten to fifteen families with members too elderly to move were either unable to leave or chose to stay in their homes in Kessab. The following day, March 22, Syrian troops reportedly launched a counteroffensive in an attempt to regain the border crossing point. However, on Sunday, March 23, the extremist groups once again entered the town of Kessab, took the remaining Armenian families hostage, and desecrated the town’s three Armenian churches, pillaging local residences and occupying the town and surrounding villages. We are sure that you can understand the plight of these Syrian Armenian families who have now found refuge in Latakia. We trust that you will continue to supply us with the means to look after yet more families in need of assistance. Through you we can provide immediate relief to the most vulnerable Armenian families. Relief of all types is needed. We need to assist our people under such circumstances by, 1. Preparing food parcels to the needy who are in shelters. 2. Providing medication and medical assistance for the sick and the desperate. 3. Providing sanitary supplies under such an inhumane situation. 4. Providing clothes and blankets for those who are in shelters. With all that is going on the Syrian crisis puts the Christian communities everywhere face- to-face with the threat of extinction. We belong to a small minority, with little in our hands but the best contribution to our own country, our Faith and Ourselves. We need to act accordingly, with conviction and courage! Pray with us in faith and hope that the violent conflict comes to an end and that a reconciliation process will begin. May God remain in us and with us as we in the Armenian Evangelical Church remain His faithful ambassadors of wisdom, knowledge, and light in this world. Regards Rev. Haroutune Selimian President Armenian Protestant Community in Syria Tel: +963 21 4642 450 +963 21 4467 528 Fax: +963 21 460 73330 Email: [email protected] Bethel Church Facebook Account: https://www.facebook.com/bethel.church.180 YouTube address: http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Rev.%20haroutune%20selimian&sm=3 .
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