Armenian Civilian Killed in Iraq

Thanks to Levon for bringing this sad event to my attention.

Albert A. Haroutounian, a 36-year-old civilian from Havertown who was killed in Iraq while working as a translator for the Army, was buried yesterday in the western Chester County town of Honey Brook.

Haroutounian was working in Iraq with Trinity Inc., a small company that employs translators across the globe. His dream was to make enough money to open a pizza shop in Delaware County, said a person close to the family.

May he rest in peace.

Mr. Haroutounian wrote a book called The Clock Doc: An Essence of Time Mended Properly! I encourage you to have a look at it.

Source: The Philadephia Enquirer

Picture: Armenian Soldiers in Iraq

Well, not soldiers per se. If you recall, they are: "...truck drivers, 10 sappers, 3 medics and 2 officers" or some combination thereof.

Armenia Home to 300,000 Refugees

Chance are you didn't know about this, because I surely did not:

...the number of refugees across the globe reached 10 million in 2006...and including more than 300,000 in Armenia. The Iraqi crisis is cited as the main reason for the increase.

About 400,000 people took refugee in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh because of the Karabakh conflict that broke out in 1988...some 360,000 came to Armenia from Azerbaijan, and the other 40,000 came from other republics of the former USSR...many of the refugees abandoned Armenia because of heavy social conditions.

Two important points to realize:

1) Armenia has a disproportionately large population of refugees, accounting for 3% of all the world's refugees in a country that comprises 0.05% of the world population.

2) Refugees found it difficult to remain in Armenia and eventually dispersed shortly after the Nagorno-Karabakh war ended.

I am shocked at both of these conclusions.

Source: Armenia Now

VIDEO: Armenians Targeted in Iraq

Armenians and other non-Muslim minorities are being killed in Iraq for their beliefs. This video was sent in by an Armenia Blog reader; His mom is the woman interviewed in the clip starting at 2:05.

United States Donates Military Hospital to Armenia

Looks like Armenia's support of the U.S. in Iraq has paid off.

The $1.2 million facility, inaugurated by U.S. and Armenian officials at the weekend, will be part of a special battalion of Armenia’s Armed Forces that provides troops for the U.S.-led occupation force in Iraq and the NATO-led peace-keeping contingent in Kosovo.

Lieutenant Colonel Doug Peterson, chief of the Office of Defense Cooperation at the U.S. embassy in Armenia, said the donation marked the beginning of “intensive medical training and cooperation between” the Armenian and U.S. militaries. The hospital will receive more U.S. equipment later this year or early next, he said.

Nothing ever comes free. Of course, Armenia went into Iraq to get political benefits from the U.S. - so far it has only got a mobile hospital.

Source: ArmeniaLiberty

U.S. Wants More Armenians in Iraq & abroad!

It's not enough that Armenians are staying in the war for political reasons, now the U.S. is hinting that more participation would be better!

“The recent decision by the National Assembly and the recent statements by the defense minister made clear that Armenia understands that it must be a contributor to international security,” Godfrey told reporters. “This is important and dangerous work, and we very much appreciate it.”

Okay, so far, so good. But then he says this:

“Certainly the United States would welcome an increase,” the diplomat said. Godfrey indicated that this could pave the way for Armenian involvement in other conflict zones such as Afghanistan. “As Armenia develops its peace-keeping capabilities and the U.S. government is providing significant assistance in this, we hope that it will increase its deployment [abroad],” he said.

Just great! What Armenia needs now is to send its young to die in foreign wars, at least until we start fighting our own again. Ridiculous! Not until the U.S. recognizes the Armenian Genocide!

Source: ArmeniaLiberty

Iran President Meets Armenian Families

From his words alone, you could conclude that he's a leader who cares about the many communities in his country, especially non-Muslims. But can we really take his words at face value?

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad met last Saturday evening with a group of families of the martyrs from Iran's Armenian community who fell victims to Iran-Iraqi war in 1980-1988. An Armenian-language Alik newspaper published in Tehran said the president wanted to learn what kind of problems these families face promising to help settle them.

"We are all like members of a single family heading for common goals" the president was quoted as saying in a reference to integration of the Christians in the entire nation. He said mothers of all Iranian martyrs, who have, so far, met him, speak in similar way regardless of being Muslim, Christian, Jewish or Zoroastrian.

After all, it seems he makes direct threats to certain neighboring countries with no shame. Is Armenia right in being friends with Iran? Does it have a choice?

Source: ArmenPress

Armenians Remain in Iraq Despite Escalation of Violence

It seems that Armenia will remain in Iraq as long as the "war" ends up lasting.

The spokesperson Seyran Shahsuvarian said the platoon comprises 30 truck drivers, 10 sappers, 3 medics and 2 officers.

When asking in early December the Armenian parliament to extend the presence of the Armenian contingent in Iraq for another year defense minister Serzh Sarkisian said the peacekeeping mission in Iraq promotes enhancement of international standing of Armenia and its armed forces.

At least these are relatively low-risk tasks, even though a stray bullet from a machine gun hundreds of yards away does not differentiate between soldier and truck driver.

Source: ArmenPress

Profile: Calouste Gulbenkian

Calouste Gulbenkian
1869 - 1955

Calouste Gulbenkian born into an illustrious Armenian family in Scutari, Turkey. The oil baron got his start in England: he studied petroleum engineering at King's College London and immediately thereafter went to the oil-rich Middle East and opened it up to the world; he was also instrumental in founding the oil-giant Royal Dutch/Shell. Gulbenkian was the main architect behind the Turkish Petroleum Company, which was created in 1912/1914 so that the biggest European oil companies could explore for oil in Iraq: this would also ensure that other firms would be kept out, thus greater profits for the participants.

From all of his business endeavors, Gulbenkian amassed an incredible fortune, which he used to build an amazing art collection. His collection is now housed in a museum in Lisbon, Portugal, and includes rare and treasured art, some dating back nearly 4,000 years; When he died, a clause in his will created the Gulbenkian Foundation, whose activities are in the fields of arts, charity, education and science. The foundation also awards an annual Gulbenkian Prize of £100,000 to a museum or gallery in the United Kingdom for "track record of imagination, innovation and excellence".

Did you know?
Gulbenkian is very well known as "Mr. Five Percent" because he had a 5% interest in the Turkish Petroleum Company, which he put together. It may not seem like a lot, but it was enough to make him a multimillionaire and reportedly the richest man in the world for many years!

If you would like to learn more, here are some suggested sources:
Gulbenkian Museum
Gulbenkian Foundation
Calouste Gulbenkian
Iraq Petroleum Company
Gulbenkian Prize
Gulbenkian Essay