CHRISTIAN EAST – THE CRADLE OF CIVILIZATION IS BEING DESTROYED

Secretary of the Union of Assyrians, Honored Artist of Armenia Razmik Khosroyev presents the problems of Assyrians living in the Middle East.

– In Syria and Iraq, the Assyrians are in extremely serious conditions, the areas populated with Assyrians are still in the hands of the terrorists of the Islamic State. The only consolation is that some of the prisoners – women and children were released. What is doing today the Islamic State in the Middle East – that is the Turks ideology declared 100 years ago: East – without Christians.

Destruction of Assyrian ancient culture by the Islamists – is the greatest evil against humanity. The Assyrians gave humanity cuneiform and literature, Hamurappi laws carved on a rock.

Pope not only condemned this barbarity, but also suggested the US Senate to create a Christian country on the territory of Nineveh and Mosul for the Assyrians, Armenians, Arabs, Christians, Yezidis.

We have repeatedly expressed our gratitude to the Government of Armenia for the humane attitude which it expressed to not only Christian-Assyrians, but also to all national minorities. If the Armenians during the Genocide lost 1,5 million innocent people, the loss of Christian Assyrians was 500-700 thousand.

Potential of the Assyrian Diaspora is not so large compared with the Armenian Diaspora. However, in the common struggle, we can do many things: because the Christian-Assyrians have always defended the Armenian issue. And in the last 25-30 years, we have ensured that many countries have condemned and adopted resolutions on genocides of Armenians, Assyrians and Greeks.

When the Assyrian community of Armenia raised the issue of the status of the Assyrian refugees, the Armenian government immediately responded, expressing willingness to accept living in Syria Assyrians in the same status as the Syrian Armenians. We hope that on March 23 the Parliament of Armenia will recognize the genocide against the Assyrians of Ottoman Empire and Greeks of Pontus, which will give us the opportunity to present our demands to Turkey. I think that the adoption of such document once again will prove our centuries-old friendship, since Ara the Beautiful and Semiramis to horse of Andranik – Aslan, from Assyrian historian Mar Abbas Katina to Khorenatsy …

The people who do not want to die, do not die. Assyrian Christians and Armenians will long live together and create, the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide – it’s not the end, this is the beginning, the beginning of the joint struggle.

Interview by Hasmik Poghosyan