JUNE 21, 2014 MirTHErARoMENr IAN -Spe ctator Volume LXXXIV, NO. 48, Issue 4342 $ 2.00 NEWS IN BRIEF The First English Language Armenian Weekly in the United States Since 1932 Syrian Forces Armenian Mirror- Armenian Matteo Darmian Plays Spectator Annual Retake Kessab For Italy’s World Cup Team Summer Break WATERTOWN — The Armenian Mirror- By Nabih Bulos SAO PAOLO, Brazil — Spectator will close for two weeks in July as Italian defender Matteo part of its annual summer break. Darmian, of Armenian The last issue published before the vacation DAMASCUS (Los Angeles Times) — descent, is one of the will be the June 28 issue, and the first edition Forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar breakout stars of the back would be that of July 19. Assad overran rebel positions in an Italian World Cup team. Armenian border town in northern Syria Darmian was born in on Sunday after months of fighting, accord - the northern Italian town ing to activists and the government. of Legnano. He plays for Armenian Church, The Syrian Observatory for Human Turin now. He caught the Cemetery Desecrated in eye of Italy coach Cesare Prandelli during a great Van season with the Turin club and was invited to a ISTANBUL (Armenpress) — Many Armenian his - national team training torical monuments in Turkey continue to be des - camp in March 2014, the ecrated by treasure hunters who are looking for prelude to his appearance gold left by the Armenians near each Armenian in the coach’s 23-man list monument. The Turkish bestanuce1.com site for Brazil 2014. reported that the old Armenian church and He has thus far won cemetery in the Edremit district (Artamet) of Van Syrian fighters raise their hands after seizing raves for his appearance have become regular targets of treasure seekers. the predominantly Armenian Christian town As a result of digging in the cemetery, the bones of Kessab, Syria. (Associated Press) in the game against England. Italy is to face of the Armenians are now spread around. Stray Costa Rica on June 20 dogs carry the bones to residential areas. Resident Rights, a pro-opposition, Britain-based and Uruguay on June 24. Yusuf Cicek said that since the church and ceme - watchdog with a network of activists on the tery are not protected by any institution, day by day ground, reported that fighters from the they are getting closer to final destruction. Lebanese Shiite militant group Hezbollah The representative of the Regional Council of as well as special forces units from the Protection of Cultural Property in Van refused to Syrian army were able to seize control of comment on the issue. the town of Kessab on the Syrian-Turkish Islamic Terrorist Group Attacks border after clashes with Islamist brigades that included the Al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Two More Armenians Front. Holy Echmiadzin Church in Mosul Die, Many Injured in Syrian state media confirmed the report, saying pro-government forces “restored MOSUL, Iraq (Asbarez) — The jihadist ISIS has pounded cities and towns in Aleppo security and stability to Kessab,” adding group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), Iraq and has announced plans to invade that large numbers of armed opponents which has been systematically attacking — Baghdad, in what is becoming a serious ALEPPO, Syria (Armenpress) — On June 16, in were killed and their weaponry destroyed. and invading — key cities in Iraq, attacked threat by the Al Qaeda-backed militant the Sebil neighborhood of Aleppo, an Armenian The report said the area was being cleared the Holy Echmiadzin Armenian Church in group. woman died from mortar shrapnel. According to of land mines. Iraq’s second largest city, Mosul, according The Archbishop of the Armenian Prelacy Aleppo’s news office, she was Seda Basmajyan, Pro-government forces and rebel factions to the religious leader of the Armenian reported that 15,000 to 16,000 Armenian 72. She was laid to rest the following day. have been fighting for control of the coun - community of nearby Dohuk, Rev. Massis Christians remained in the country, primari - On June 17, Vrej Chapaghjurian was killed try for over three years, plunging Syria into Shahinyan. ly in the cities of Baghdad, Basrah, Kirkuk when the New Village district of the city became a vicious civil war that has killed more than On Tuesday, 65 Armenian families and a and Mosul. Evangelical Christians reported - the target of missiles. Several others were 160,000 people and destroyed large swaths priest in Mosul were forced out of the city ly number between 5,000 and 6,000. They wounded. of the country. after ISIS militants raided and took control can be found in the northern part of the During the last two months, dozens of see KESSAB, page 3 of Iraq’s second largest city. country, as well as in Baghdad, with a very Armenians have been injured or killed in Aleppo. small number residing in Basrah. The situation has rapidly deteriorated, in partic - Christian leaders have estimated that as ular, in the Armenian New Village district, since much as 50 percent of the country’s the first days of June. The terrorist groups, many New UN Ambassador Feted by TCA Group Christian population lives in Baghdad, and of which are based in Turkey, have showered the 30 to 40 percent live in the north, with the city with rockets and bombs. The rockets fallen NEW YORK — Members of the Tekeyan Cultural Association (TCA) Greater New largest Christian communities located in and in the Armenian New Village district, besides the York Chapter Executive Committee met on Tuesday, June 17, with the new repre - human damage, have caused terrible material sentative of Armenia at the United Nations, Ambassador Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, at damage. The New Village district is today an area the Armenian Permanent Mission offices. The chairman of the TCA New York chap - of disaster and ruins. ter, Hagop Vartivarian, at a reception which followed at the Morgan Library, offered During the three-year conflict in Syria, the the support of the TCA to the ambassador. Pictured below, from left, are Dr. number of the killed Armenians is over 100. Vaghenag Tarpinian, Shoghig Chalian, Vartivarian, Mnatsakanyan, Dr. Svetlana Amirkhanian and Sirvart Demirjian. INSI DE Holy Echmiadzin Church in Mosul Ship around Mosul, Erbil, Dohuk, and Kirkuk. Leaders of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party Shape (PKK), who are based in the Qandil Mountains in Northern Iraq, have issued a statement saying that its armed units were Page 5 prepared to resist attacks by the ISIS forces and will guarantee safe passage to Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen, and Armenians who live in Northern Iraq and are fleeing their homes. INDEX The leadership of the autonomous Arts and Living . 10 Kurdistan region of Northern Iraq is Armenia . 2 deploying a large number of Peshmerga Community News. 5 military units — which form the country’s Editorial . 14 armed forces — ahead of the ISIS militants. International . 3,4 The PKK militants are coordinating efforts with Peshmergas. 2 S ATURDAY , J UNE 21, 2014 T HE A RMENIAN M IRROR -S PECTATOR ARMENIA News From Armenia From Denmark with Love: Meet Line (and Tatevik) YEREVAN, Armenia – Line Knudsen doesn’t have a single drop of Armenia blood. So what could possibly make her Three Charged with want to volunteer in Armenia — not once, but twice? Her childhood friend, Smuggling Armenian Tatevik Revazian. Nationals Into US Knudsen, 24, and Revazian grew up in the same neighborhood of Kastrup, LOS ANGELES (Hetq) — A Los Angeles man was just outside Copenhagen, and became arraigned in a San Diego federal court on best friends. Through Revazian, Monday for allegedly masterminding a scheme Knudsen discovered more than all through which Armenian nationals were smuggled things Armenian; she discovered a to the United States via Russia and Mexico. Grigor Chatalyan, 44, along with two Armenians from Glendale, are said to have charged up to $18,000 per person according to the indictment unsealed this morning. Line Knudsen at one of her AVC volunteer placements at Ghoghanj Children’s Center Chatalyan’s group allegedly arranged for the Armenian nationals to fly to Moscow, where they were given fraudulent Russian passports to travel sites and savoring the wonderful hospi - AmStream.net, whose mission is to cre - to Cancun, Mexico. Once there, they would be tality and foods. At the end of that trip ate an innovative pipeline for streaming taken to Tijuana, court documents state. Knudsen promised herself that she opportunities and principles between Chatalyan and his co-conspirators would procure would definitely return, but for longer Armenia and Scandinavia in the fields the next time. Knudsen did just that in of business, education, science and cul - valid US permanent-resident cards or passports Line Knudsen and Tatevik Revazian from within the United States and try to use those grew up together in the same neighbor - 2011. She came to Armenia for three ture. And of course Knudsen has been documents to pass Armenian nationals into the hood of Kastrup and have been friends months as a volunteer with the an active member of that organization United States at the San Ysidro port of entry. ever since Armenian Volunteer Corps (AVC). She from the outset. was just starting her social work studies Flash forward to 2014. Knudsen is at the time and she said the different nearing the end of her studies and can Rape Victim Supporters burning interest in learning more; she experiences she had as a volunteer in now do an internship abroad — and she Demonstrate Outside dreamed of visiting Armenia, a country Armenia inspired her, enabling her to has chosen to return to Armenia with most Danes had never even heard of decide on the specifics of her studies.