Prospect of Arab League sanctions
مجلس الوحدة الاقتصادية العربية يعارض فرض عقوبات اقتصادية على سوريا
Arab Economic Unity Council opposes the imposition of economic sanctions on Syria
http://www.aksalser.com/index.php?page=view_news&id=d78ecb0b5c8bc3cfd198797eadfed8b4&ar=59133769
http://www.sana.sy/eng/337/2011/11/24/383961.htm
http://www.sana.sy/ara/3/2011/11/24/383913.htm
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 12:45:46
Objected to the Arab Economic Unity Council to impose economic sanctions on Syria to implement the decision of the Arab League Council at the level of Foreign Ministers.
The Board considered that the imposition of such sanctions is detrimental to the Syrian people and not the political elites.
The secretary General of the Council, Dr. Muhammad spring in a memorandum handed over today to Arab League Secretary General Nabil el-Arabi that the imposition of sanctions on Syria based on the premise that these sanctions will deprive the system of the support of the Syrian economy, in fact, this community has no interest in the heart of the system due to its privileges and proceeds, in addition to the smuggling routes coalesce sanctions certainly.
He added that the isolate Syria economically exacerbate some of the structural problems and delays the modernization of the economy, and this will be punished for the Syrian people rather than punish the political elite, because the deterioration of the Syrian economic growth would increase unemployment and poverty, especially with the economy is almost dependent on levels of agriculture, tourism and Aaltjarh and others.
And re-spring in his note to recall that Syria is subject to U.S. economic sanctions since 2003, and that this did not weaken the system.
The Memorandum of Economic Unity Council meeting on the eve of the Arab League Council at the level of Foreign Ministers, which will be considered in the Syrian issue, including the imposition of economic sanctions on Syria.
مدير شؤون العمل: لا مؤشرات على تسريح السوريين العاملين في الدول العربية
Director of Labor Affairs: No signs of the demobilization of Syrian workers in Arab countries
http://www.aksalser.com/index.php?page=view_news&id=74443f2a77a494c9ba4fbcd35ccb662a&ar=375210066
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 11:47:27
The Director of Labour Affairs of the Federation of Trade Unions, "Ahmed Hassan" that are no indications so far according to the demobilization of Syrian workers in the neighboring Arab countries, although this has happened in the global economic crisis in 2008 and 2009.
The "Hassan" according to the newspaper "home" that Syria could not take action and if the anti-union workers suffer the problem of dissecting local enterprises to their workers, how can prevent neighboring countries from the layoffs that it considers foreign.
The number of laid-off workers since the beginning of this year exceeded six and seventy thousand workers, most recently lay off 17 thousand workers because of the Syrian crisis of the current, and were of existing and attributed the reason for the large number of layoffs arbitrary to the provisions of the new labor law that authorized the employer dismiss a worker without legal coverage, in time when the previous texts recognize the theater arbitrary right to obtain 80% of pay or return to work, the current law provides for compensation of arbitrary two-month wage for each year of work.
بعد أن شملت 5 قطاعات مهمة .. العقوبات الاقتصادية على سوريا ستطال مصارف وشركات كويتية
After that important sectors included 5 .. Economic sanctions on Syria will reach banks and Kuwaiti companies
http://www.aksalser.com/index.php?page=view_news&id=87823ed4e9c669d1918543113548b9b3&ar=7706264
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 9:57:13
With the departure of the international community to impose economic sanctions on Syria and nominated the intention of the Arab League economic sanctions within days, 5 to important sectors, including travel industry, and money transfers, and the freezing of funds in the Arab States, the suspension of existing projects, joint ventures and commercial transactions, and although those targeted sanctions - according Varedaha - the Syrian regime, but the impact may not be limited to the same system, to include multi-Kuwaiti economic sectors, especially if we know that the Kuwaiti investments in Syria up to more than $ 6 billion.
According to the "Times", the Kuwaiti banks may eligible for the side of the impact of those sanctions, especially those that have a presence in the Syrian market, namely the two banks, and circumstances taking place in Syria, in addition to the new sanctions on Syria may make the investment opportunities in the Syrian market almost non-existent, which undoubtedly will influence the performance of those banks and the lack of funding opportunities there.
The sources say that a number of Kuwaiti banks financed projects in millions of dollars to Kuwaiti companies in Syria, if the projects had a list of currently, it is natural that affected revenues of such projects negatively, what is happening currently disorder, let alone the imposition of new economic sanctions on Syria pointing out that the suspension of existing projects or those currently under development, will undoubtedly Kuwaiti companies operating in the Syrian market, especially in the sectors of tourism, real estate, even that which depends mainly on investment in that country, and their two companies Roster on the Kuwait Stock Exchange .
And draws the same sources that the decline in revenues of such projects, and stop the unfinished ones, will extend its impact on banks' funding for these projects, in addition to the difficulties facing these companies under sanctions imposed on Syria, on the one hand to prevent the transfer of funds through banks, and stop trading, as may not be able to pay premiums that companies finance their due on time, which may lead to the accession of troubled companies and, therefore, funded banks may resort to take provisions against those funds.
According to the implications of other Kuwaiti banks, as a result stop money transfers to Syria, and with it, from the loss of revenue is the fees for such transfers, which would apply to the exchange companies, Kuwait, in addition to forcing banks to freeze the assets of a large Syrian businessmen may be within the prospective customers because of the sanctions.
The sources believe that if the penalty was a travel ban aimed at stopping travel to Syria to put pressure on the regime, through the blind him a source of basic income is the tourism sector, the impact of such punishment would be clear to the airlines of Kuwait, and the offices of the travel and tourism, through the loss and a major Arab For her, will affect its revenues.
The sources add "aspect of the investment activity of Kuwait in Syria, investment in the insurance sector, a gallery more than ever to risk under the current circumstances in Syria, and the possibility of recourse against the companies there are damages, claims, especially in terms of insurance on the property of individuals, companies, life insurance and accident General and others. "
As for individuals, says the sources that many Kuwaitis have investments or property of real estate and tourism in Syria, personally, would be of economic sanctions on Syria's influence on them, then that property may be threatened by significant risks in light of current circumstances in Syria, in addition to what may cause the Arab-Syrian sanctions losses for Kuwaiti companies, individuals will be affected by the shareholders in those companies are not inevitable.
Iran warns AL of Western plots in ME
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/211549.html
Tue Nov 22, 2011 7:4PM
Iran's Foreign Ministry has warned the Arab League (AL) to be mindful of the West's paradoxical approach to the developments in the Middle East region.
"These behaviors indicate a substandard political approach and attitude. The West is attempting to avert public attention from the main threat to the region," Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said in a press conference on Tuesday.
"Western countries have long had discriminatory behavior and dual standards. They have lost face in the [world's] public opinion. The Arab League member states must be aware of these political games and Western sedition," he urged.
Regarding the developments in Syria, the Iranian official called on "those countries seeking stability, security, resolution of crises and fulfillment of people's demands" to join hands and help negotiations between Damascus and the opposition.
Mehmanparast warned against any foreign intervention in Syria's internal affairs, and said countries from outside the Middle East are not interested in the establishment of security and stability in the region.
The Arab League has set a deadline of November 26 for Syria to comply with the AL peace plan, threatening to impose sanctions if Damascus fails to end the ongoing unrest in the country.
The Arab League, which has also suspended Syria's membership over the unrest, is pushing the Syrian government to allow in teams of observers to help establish calm in the country, a move Damascus has described as "illegitimate and dangerous."
Syria has been experiencing deadly unrest since mid-March, with demonstrations being held both against and in support of the Assad government.
Thousands of people, including hundreds of security forces and army personnel, have been killed in the ongoing violence, which the Syrian government blames on outlaws, saboteurs, and armed terrorists.
Damascus says that the chaos is being orchestrated from outside the country and the security forces have been given clear instructions not to harm civilians.
سفير إيران بلبنان: سورية ستتخطى المؤامرات الخارجية
Iran's ambassador to Lebanon: Syria will exceed the foreign plots
http://www.sana.sy/ara/3/2011/11/23/383662.htm
November 23, 2011
Beirut, (SANA) -
Iranian Ambassador to Lebanon Ghazanfar Abadi corner that Syria strong leadership with wisdom and awareness of its people will surpass all foreign plots hatched against the conspirators no matter how much the opposite, pointing out that the demands of subjecting them to serve the interests of Israel.
He said Abadi during a meeting with a delegation to meet with parties and forces, and personalities of the Lebanese National solidarity with Tehran against the American onslaught of Western fierce for her, thanks to their positions in support of Arab causes, the just and fair, namely the Palestinian issue, Iran and Syria have always been likely targets of the forces of tyranny the world for decades due to their positions in favor to the right.
He stressed Abadi that Iran was and still is and will remain a champion of the right and the liberals in the world against colonial powers, especially the United States and Israel aimed at plundering the wealth of peoples and colonization of noting the achievements of national achievements of the resistance in Lebanon against the Zionist enemy in the liberation of most of the land and recover most of the prisoners without limitation or condition, considering that the independence of Lebanon will be completed editing the rest of the Lebanese territory from Israeli occupation abomination.
صحيفة إيرانية: لا يمكن لأي حكومة أن تتعامل مع عناصر مسلحة على أراضيها بشكل سياسي
Iranian newspaper: cannot any government to deal with armed elements on its territory in a political
http://www.sana.sy/ara/3/2011/11/23/383605.htm
November 23, 2011
Tehran, (SANA) -
Iran's Kayhan newspaper said .. Everyone now knows that the armed elements in Syria is supported by the West and its allied regimes in the region and that it obeys Bomrthm saying it is not possible for any government to deal with, such as what I did these armed elements politically.
She drew the newspaper in an editorial today to be on the lookout for its administration, when asked the militants not to lay down their arms after the approval of the Syrian government on the initiative of the Arab League confirmed that the position of the American administration and armed elements in Syria confirms that they are seeking to internationalize the issue of Syria.
The paper, it is impossible to repeat the Libyan scenario in Syria because of the radical difference between the two countries and because the opposition outside the Syrian border, does not enjoy great popularity among the Syrians as well as the site enjoyed by Syria in the front of resistance.
The newspaper pointed out that the Syrian people are in their rallies of millions in various cities showed their support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and the reform process undertaken by saying that some regional countries even showed hostility to Syria, they cannot attack them because a wide spectrum of people rejected it.
The newspaper reported that Syria is passed in such situations before and have experience in breaking the siege and attack the outside and this is why they still enjoy peace and stability on most of its territory.
إيران تتسلم عدداً كبيراً من منظومة صواريخ ساحل بحر المصنعة محليا
Iran received a large number of Sahil missile system locally manufactured
http://www.sana.sy/ara/3/2011/11/23/383613.htm
November 23, 2011
Tehran, (SANA) -
Iran's naval force received today a large number of Sahil missile system manufactured locally by the Marine Industries Organization of Iran.
The Minister of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics Iranian Brigadier General Ahmad Wahidi on the sidelines of the ceremony that the development of powerful elements in the field of defense is one of the pillars of policies of the Republic of Iran to counter any threat, saying that strengthening the naval force of Iran constantly is one of the basic strategies of the Ministry of Defense of Iran.
He described the Wahidi naval force of Iran as an active force and active in the region and said that this could become a force in the implementation of the coastal defense mission more effectively.
The Iranian defense minister said of the special characteristics of this rocket systems is the possibility of rotation of the launchers to cover a wide area of the coast and the presence of a network between the platforms keep track of and identify many objectives and provide overall management and simultaneous, in addition to increasing the capacity of the flexibility and the high level of safety factor for the forces of self-operating and detection of targets large marine and small and destroyed simultaneously at distances near and far and as quickly as possible.
He noted the efforts of Vahidi Iranian experts who contributed to the design, manufacture and production of this missile system strong.
In turn, the commander of naval power in the Iranian army Admiral Habibollah Sayari said the naval force of Iran in light of their existing systems and add to it today to have the ability to respond to any threat in the area of the sea and the coast, noting the efforts and activities in different industries at the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics of Iran which enabled Iran to reach extremely high capabilities in the field of surface-surface and surface air and sea coast and under the surface and it is possible to guard the Iranian airspace with prudence and professionalism.
هيئة الاستثمار : 6 مشروعات إيرانية جديدة في القنيطرة
Investment Authority: 6 new Iranian projects in al-Qunaitirah
http://www.aksalser.com/index.php?page=view_news&id=ff97c5fbdaf3f00b40185b1fb535fe5f&ar=580447234
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 9:15:35
He revealed: "Ahmed Diab," Director General of the Syrian Investment Commission that the volume of foreign investments in Syria, and reached to 18 billion Syrian pounds, which represented 25 percent of the volume of investment, pointing out that there are 6 new projects launched by the Iranian side in wait to visit close to a delegation of the Council of The Syrian-Iranian business to Damascus to discuss the details.
The "Diab" percentage to the executive for the investment projects which seemed low compared to the number of projects Almhmlh, which amounted to 1206 projects carried out, including 196 projects by 16 percent, especially at the project level, which was to cover with in the industrial cities, which seemed to rate low despite the exemptions, they do not exceed 5 per percent of the total number of projects, which would indicate the need for the Legislative Decree No. 8 of the amendment and its inability to attract enough investment, which went to pay the investors to invest according to the law industry rather than the law of investment.
The "Diab" hopes for the soon to amend the investment law, or replaced by a new law takes into account the requirements of the need to invest in all sectors and includes more features incentive for investors.
And stressed the need to unify the supervisor of the investment through the creation of the Ministry of Investment Like neighboring countries, in order to prevent the case of dispersion and the discrepancy in the number of decisions concerning investment, which exceeded the 24 decision and decree.
He noted, "Diab" that the number of new projects Almhmlh and numbering to 163 investment projects at a cost of 94 billion pounds, up 4 billion pounds from last year, and a marked decline in the number of projects, which was 369 on last year.
With the current crisis and influenced by domestic and foreign investment by, he said, "Diab": "It is natural that investment with these conditions and we cannot ignore the errors that were found and the difference made in reference to the language of new dialogue that were not previously, and which is characterized by the seriousness subtracting problems. "
Iran buys crude oil from sanctions-hit Syria: report
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Nov-23/154885-iran-buys-crude-oil-from-sanctions-hit-syria-report.ashx
November 23, 2011 10:25 AM
Reuters
SINGAPORE: Iran has lifted crude from sanctions-hit Syria, the country's first export since late September, and more exports could follow from the country as buyers from India, Russia and China line up vessels, the International Oil Daily reported on Wednesday.
An Iranian-owned entity this week lifted 80,000 tonnes (586,400 barrels) of Syrian crude, consisting 50,000 tonnes of heavy Souedie and 30,000 tonnes of Syrian Light, at Baniyas, the report said, citing trading and shipping sources.
Sanctions aimed at crude oil exports have warded off normal buyers of Syrian crude, which mainly flowed to Europe, causing storage tanks to brim and forcing cuts.
Syria produced around 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) before the unrest of which about a third was exported.
سوريا تصدر أول شحنة نفطية لإيران
Syria exported the first shipment of oil to Iran
http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_news&id=831fe6525fb0de0fcc064866f25d53c6&ar=119171189
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 15:03:04
Bulletin said, "International Oil Daily," specialized in the oil industry on Wednesday that Iran has bought a cargo of crude oil, the Syrian, the first oil exports to Syria since late September.
According to Reuters, the bulletin pointed out that the "owned entity of Iran took over this week's shipment of 80 tons, which consists of crude al-Suwaida heavy and 30 thousand tons of Syrian crude light", expected to be followed by more shipments from buyers such as India, Russia and China. " .
The United States imposed and the European Union in September last sanctions require a ban on the import of oil from Syria.
The European market before the imposition of sanctions, the main partner of the Foundation Syrian oil, accounting for imports of the Union 3.1 billion euros last year, according to European sources, and imported Europe 95% of Syria's oil in 2010 were distributed to Germany 32% Italy 31% France 11%, Netherlands 9% .
According to previous reports that Syria is based on about 28% of their income on oil export revenues, Syria, where production is 387 thousand barrels of oil a day, repeated more than two-thirds locally, but not enough to meet the local need is having to import.
Syria and worked after the imposition of sanctions to reduce production by about 20 to 25%, also worked on the operation of oil refineries at maximum capacity.
أول شحنة "تطيح" بالعقوبات الأوربية.. 80 ألف طن من النفط السوري اتجه إلى إيران... وهندوستان للبترول الهندية تتطلع لشراء النفط الخام من سورية
The first shipment of "topple" European sanctions .. 80 thousand tons of oil went to Iran, Syria ... Hindustan Petroleum and Indian looking to buy crude oil from Syria
http://www.syriandays.com/index.php?page=show_det&id=28963
Wednesday 23/11/2011
16:41:29
(shipment to Iran omitted)
For its part, Reuters reported that informed sources reported on Wednesday that the company Hindustan Petroleum Corporation of India is looking to purchase crude oil from Syria, which are subject to sanctions and asked the company shipping the Indian state-run carrier to arrange.
The sanctions have prevented the targeting exports of crude oil buyers crude Syrian regular and mainly European customers, which provided the opportunity for Asians top importers such as India and China, which have stakes in the Syrian oil industry.
The sources said that the Indian shipping company looking for Aframax tanker of Hindustan Petroleum. The issue is complicated because sanctions prohibit insurance protection and compensation is necessary for the Syrian ships laden with oil, which means the inability of the Indian shipping company to use its fleet.
India currently does not import crude oil from Syria, but a trade source said that Indian companies may be attracted to the Syrian crude oil due to a possible reduction in the price ..
He has a joint venture between Oil and Natural Gas of India and China National Petroleum Corporation a stake in AFPC is the consortium's main crude production in Syria and operated by the Syrian Petroleum Company and Shell
Mansour: Lebanon Will Not Take Part in Any Sanctions Imposed by Arab League on Syria
http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/11/23/383742.htm
Nov 23, 2011
BEIRUT, (SANA) – Lebanese Foreign Minister Adnan Mansour on Wednesday said that that Lebanon will not take part in any sanctions imposed by the Arab League on Syria.
In an interview with al-Manar TV, Mansour said that economic sanctions against Syria aren't in Lebanon's interest due to the nature of relations between the two countries and the agreements they signed which include security and fraternity agreements, affirming that Lebanon honors these agreements and is committed to them.
In a similar interview with al-Manar TV, Lebanese Minister of Economy and Trade Nicola Nahhas said that Lebanon will never close its borders with Syria, stressing that Lebanon has direct and mutual interests with Syria, and that keeping the borders open benefits Lebanon.
المفتي قبلان يدعو إلى الوقوف صفاً واحد لإفشال المشروع الاميركي الاسرائيلي في المنطقة
Mufti Qabalan alls to stand as one project to thwart the US-Israeli in the region
http://www.sana.sy/ara/3/2011/11/23/383631.htm
November 23, 2011
Beirut, (SANA) -
Jaafari called Mufti Shaikh Ahmed Qabalan Premier to stand as one project to thwart the United States and Israel, which aims to ignite strife among peoples.
The Qabalan during a meeting with the representative of the EU Parliament Frederick Boykin and a delegation from northern Iraq, in addition to the Coordinator of the Conference on the future of Christians in the Middle Maroun Karam, co-existence among all walks enjoyed by the Arab and Islamic region, stressing the pursuit to make efforts to thwart any project is designed to live.
He called on the EU to play an important role to stand by and support vulnerable countries in the maintenance of their rights.
Al-Sadr: AL Decision against Syria Unjust
http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/11/23/383528.htm
Nov 23, 2011
BAGHDAD, (SANA) – Leader of Sadr Movement Moqtada al-Sadr on Wednesday strongly condemned the Arab League (AL) decision against Syria, considering the AL as "patron of injustice".
In a statement reported by the French News Agency (AFP), al-Sadr wondered how to expect justice from the patron of the injustice, answering a question on the AL's flagrant support of the armed groups that kill army members and citizens in Syria.
Al-Sadr hoped that Syria will overcome the sinister conspiracy hatched against it.
Iraq abstained from voting on the AL Decision to suspend Syria's membership at the AL, taken on November 12, as the Iraqi Government Spokesman Ali al-Dabbagh described the way the Arab League (AL) voted on the decision about Syria as "unacceptable and marked by double standards.
Egyptian Media Figures: Syria won't be Undermined Due to the Syrian's High Spirit
http://www.sana.sy/eng/22/2011/11/23/383509.htm
Nov 23, 2011
DAMASCUS,(SANA)- Egyptian Journalist and Politician, Ali Muhammad Ali affirmed that Syria will remain steadfast in the face of media aggression and the political and diplomatic pressures due to the high spirit of the Syrian people which can be sensed by whoever wanders in the streets of the Syrian cities.
In an interview with the Syrian TV on Tuesday, Ali indicated that there is a media war against Syria with the aim of undermining it because it is the only resistant Arab country and the last fort of the resistance.
He added that the current crisis in Syria will end due to implementing a package of reforms, saying "At the beginning, I rejected to come to Syria due to the false scenes broadcast by some satellite channels, yet when I started to find out that there is a war against Syria through the virtual world, and that what is being broadcast by the so-called 'Syrian revolution coordinators' is very far from reality and this is what encouraged me to visit Syria in order to get acquainted with the reality of the events."
" I wandered in the streets and I met a lot of the Syrians and I held dialogues with them as I noticed that the life in Syria is very normal and I became confident of the unity of the Syrian people who defend Syria," he added.
He affirmed that the aggression against Syria means an aggression against the whole region as the Arab nation will not keep silent, and it will defend Syria and this is the popular stance in all the Arab countries, "The US will not risk and occupy and a new Arab country particularly after its occupation of Iraq."
"The Libyan scenario will not be repeated in Syria because the internal front is very steadfast and it is the fort in the face of any aggression or plot which aim at dividing the Arab region," Ali said.
He affirmed that the Turkish stance towards what is taking place in Syria indicates the falseness of Turkey's stance regarding the Arabs and Palestine, adding that the price for Turkey's joining the NATO is toppling the Syrian regime.
He asserted that those who attacked the Syrian delegation, which was heading for Cairo to convey a message from the Syrian people to the Arab League (AL), are not Egyptians.
Editor-in-Chief of the Nasserite al-Arab Newspaper, Majdi al-Basyouni said there is a fierce psychological war launched against Syria by some forces who want the Arab countries to become backward, yet Syria will get out of the crisis stronger.
Al-Basyouni added that Syria is the main gate for all the Arabs, indicating that any aggression against Syria will ignite the whole region as the resistant powers will not remain silent and they will reject and foil the Zionist-US schemes.
He said that the awareness of the Syrian people and their unity and solidarity with their leadership will thwart all the conspiracies hatched against Syria, criticizing al-Jazeera satellite channel as "traitor".
He affirmed that the statements of some Turkish officials come in the framework of a psychological war aiming at undermining the internal front in Syria, but the Syrians are aware of that.
He said that the AL Charter calls for defending any Arab country in the face of any attack by other country, yet the AL does the opposite .
زيارة مفاجئة من قائد القوات البرية التركية للحدود مع سوريا
Surprise visit from the commander of Turkish ground forces to the border with Syria
http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_news&id=fcbeb7e25122f52ff0f81a972bde92f3&ar=615375855
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 10:03:32
Lose ground forces commander, General Ihsanoglu Kfrck charity with a delegation of senior officers of units located on the border with Syria.
The newspaper "Hurriyet" Turkey on Wednesday that General Kfrck Ihsanoglu visited the border areas to inspect military units.
The newspaper added that the visit of General Ihsanoglu Kfrck came in the period rose by events in Syria, and after the shots were fired at a convoy of pilgrims Turks on the outskirts of the city of Hama, Syria yesterday, and that injured two people.
الحكومة التركية تمنع مدرسي اللغة التركية في جامعة حلب من الالتحاق بدروسهم
Turkish government to prevent the Turkish language teachers at the University of Aleppo, to attend their lessons
http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_articles&id=69066d037b1707afdef14ea201b4c9b3&ar=605206107
Wednesday - November 23 - 2011 - 15:47:51
Government prevented the Turks from the Turkish teachers to come to Syria and join their lessons at the University of Aleppo, after the events that accompanied the storm the consulate in Aleppo a few days ago.
And is suffering from the students of Turkish language at the University of Aleppo, a shortage of teaching staff not to attend the teachers after the Turks.
And said Riifah Abu Ras, head of the Turkish language at the University of Aleppo, in a telephone call to Aks al-Ser, "the doctors of the five teachers in the department did not attend their lessons at the University of Aleppo after the Eid al-Adha, being prevented by the Turkish government," following the events that accompanied the storming of the Turkish Consulate .
And dozens of protesters stormed the headquarters of the Turkish Consulate after throwing stones and eggs, and they unloaded and burned the Turkish flag, followed by the Turkish government to evacuate the families of diplomats who work in its embassy in Damascus and its consulate in Aleppo for security reasons.
She added that "the Turkish Consulate in Aleppo, teachers told her not to come the Turks, based on guidance from the Turkish government," noting that "the consulate informed them that she is making strenuous efforts to persuade the Turkish Embassy in Damascus and Ankara, the return of teachers."
And on the action taken, Abu Ras said, "we decided to use the Turkish language department graduates and teachers of the Higher Institute of Languages, to avoid shortages, and has met with students yesterday, and put them in what happened."
And students' concerns about the abolition of the section because of the deterioration of the Syrian-Turkish relations, Abu Ras pointed out that "a decision like this is very unlikely, since it is impossible to sacrifice the future of hundreds of students who are currently studying in the section."
It is noteworthy that the Turkish language department at the University of Aleppo, opened in 2005 2006 as a fruit of scientific cooperation between the University of Aleppo and the Euphrates, and the Universities of Gaziantep than the Turkish.
Syria at 'point of no return': Turkish president
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2011/Nov-23/154906-turkeys-gulsyria-has-reached-point-of-no-return.ashx
November 23, 2011 12:27 PM (Last updated: November 23, 2011 12:53 PM)
Agence France Presse
LONDON: syria has reached a "point of no return" in the regime's crackdown on opposition demonstrators, Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on Wednesday during his state visit to Britain.
"Unfortunately syria has come to a point of no return," Gul said in a speech, adding that the whole region could be dragged into "turmoil and bloodshed" by the crisis.
His comments come after Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday called for syrian President Bashar al-Assad to go, branding him a coward and warning he risked the same fate of dictators who met bloody deaths.
Gul told an audience in London that the fate of syria, where the risk of civil war is looming, was "important for the entire region, since the country sits on top of sectarian fault lines".
"In fact, not only for syria, but for the entire region we have a responsibility to defend the territorial integrity and political unity of the countries at all cost," he added.
"New and old divisions between and within the countries of the region should not be allowed to take root."
Gul warned: "Defining this democratic struggle along the sectarian, religious and ethnic lines would drag the whole region into turmoil and bloodshed."
The United Nations says more than 3,500 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since the protests first broke out in syria in March.
PM Erdoğan apologizes over Dersim massacre on behalf of Turkish state
http://www.todayszaman.com/news-263658-pm-apologizes-over-dersim-massacre-on-behalf-of-turkish-state.html
23 November 2011, Wednesday / YONCA POYRAZ DOĞAN, İSTANBUL
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has apologized for a 1937 massacre in the predominantly Alevi region of Dersim on behalf of the Turkish state, but said the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), which was the only political party at the time, is the actual culprit and called on the party's current leader to apologize for the incident on behalf of the CHP.
"Is it me who should apologize or you [CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu]? If there is an apology on behalf of the state and if there is such an opportunity, I can do it and I am apologizing. But if there is someone who should apologize on behalf of the CHP, it is you, as you are from Dersim. You were saying you felt honored to be from Dersim. Now, save your honor," Erdoğan said during a party meeting on Wednesday.
It was the first official apology from the Turkish government over the killing of thousands of people in the southeastern town of Dersim -- now known as Tunceli as a result of a name change in 1936 -- between 1936 and 1939.
Erdoğan was responding to Kılıçdaroğlu's demands that Turkey must face its past. Kılıçdaroğlu's family is from Tunceli. The notorious massacre took place in 1937 in Dersim, which was historically a semi-autonomous region, as a brutal response to rebellious events. The alleged rebellion was led by Seyyid Rıza, the chief of a Zaza tribe in the region. The Turkish government at the time, led by former CHP leader İsmet İnönü, responded with air strikes and other violent methods of suppression, killing thousands of people.
"Dersim is among the most tragic event in recent history. It is a disaster that should now be questioned with courage. The party that should confront this incident is not the ruling Justice and Development Party [AK Party]. It is the CHP, which is behind this bloody disaster, who should face this incident and its chairman from Tunceli," Erdoğan said, targeting Kılıçdaroğlu. The two politicians recently clashed over the long-controversial massacre.
Villagers in Dersim are being led by Turkish soldiers to an uknown destination, possibly their spot of execution, in this scene shot on film during the massacre. The image is from the documentary Kara Vagon (The Black Wagon) featuring interviews with survivors' and their relatives, released in May, 2011.
In the widening debate, Erdoğan said at his party's group meeting in Parliament on Tuesday that he planned to release a number of state documents about the incident on Wednesday. He then read excerpts from archive documents related to the massacre on Wednesday, saying thousands of people, including women and children, were killed during the Dersim operation and that the CHP was the party of the single-party government of the time.
Referring to a document dated 1939, Erdoğan said a total of 13,806 people were killed in operations carried out against the people of Dersim between 1936 and 1939. He said the document bears the signature of then-Interior Minister Faik Öztrak. Another document Erdoğan revealed related to the Dersim events was a Cabinet decree dated Dec. 23, 1938, which said 11,683 people were deported from Dersim and that 2,000 more were to be deported.
"All of these documents have the signatures of İsmet İnönü," Erdoğan said, criticizing the current CHP leader for organizing commemoration ceremonies for İnönü but failing to confront the party's past.
Contacted by Today's Zaman, Chairman of the Confrontation with the Past Association Cafer Solgun said that the prime minister's apology is of great value. "An apology coming from the prime minister of Turkey is historical. It was a historical speech. I am excited as a person from Dersim," he said.
Solgun's parents were about six or seven years old at the time of the 1937 and 1938 killings in Dersim. In his book, "Alevilerin Kemalizmle İmtihanı" (Alevis' Test with Kemalism), he questions the relationship between Alevis and Kemalism.
"If Kılıçdaroğlu were not the head of the CHP, his feelings would be similar to mine [after the speech of the prime minister]. But the CHP has a hard time facing the past," he said.
Cemal Taş, a writer who has been working on collecting oral history in Dersim for the last 20 years, said that it was necessary to call on the CHP to issue an apology as the prime minister did in Wednesday's speech.
"It was important for us from Dersim to hear that the prime minister does not share the CHP's views regarding this issue. This was important for us to hear and heals our wounds," he said.
Regarding what needs to be done after that, Taş said the people of Dersim need to know where the bodies of their sisters, mothers, brothers and fathers are. In addition, he said that they need to be assured of their rights as citizens of Turkey, where work is under way for a new constitution.
According to Şükrü Aslan, a sociologist at İstanbul's Mimar Sinan University and a writer from Dersim, Erdoğan's words were important. "It was a first in Turkey for a prime minister to call what happened in Dersim a massacre, and say that it was not a rebellion and was planned well in advance," he said. "This forces other parties, like the CHP and the MHP [Nationalist Movement Party], to develop new polices about it." However, he said that the documents that Erdoğan mentioned had previously been in the Turkish press. "What needs to be done is to have the archives of the General Staff opened. This is what the people of Dersim demand," he stated.
Aslan also said that it would be better if the prime minister had made associations between some people he mentioned, like Celal Bayar, who was the prime minister at the time, and the conservative right. "Because the prime minister associated many people responsible for the Dersim massacre, like Ali Çetinkaya, İsmet İnönü and Şükrü Kaya, with the CHP, it would have been better if he mentioned that some people are associated with the conservative right in Turkey," he said.
Hüseyin Aygün, a writer and researcher who is also from Dersim, said that, next to the "double-faced" politics of the CHP, the prime minister's words were significant. "The world has a right to know what happened in Dersim," he said.
CHP Diyarbakır branch responds to PM's call, apologizes for Dersim
In an immediate response to Erdoğan's call to apologize for the killing of thousands of people in Dersim, the CHP's Diyarbakır branch has announced that they apologize to the people of Dersim.
CHP Diyarbakır provincial branch Chairman Muzaffer Değer said hours after Erdoğan's call that the prime minister did what the CHP should have done already by apologizing for the Dersim massacre on behalf of the Turkish state. He said the CHP administration should also confront its past and apologize.
However, CHP Deputy Chairman Gürsel Tekin reacted to Erdoğan's words in a written statement that read: "I congratulate the prime minister. He put dynamite under the basis of unity in our nation and country with his language, style and explanation. He has been successful in creating animosity among the people. We learned our history, thanks to him. What else is left to say? What is the next step for the prime minister? What is the end goal of his campaign?"
'Sabiha Gökçen Airport should be renamed Seyyid Rıza'
Pro-Kurdish Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Muş deputy Sırrı Sakık has demanded that the name of the Sabiha Gökçen Airport be changed to Seyyid Rıza, who allegedly led a rebellion in Dersim as the chief of a Zaza tribe in the region.
Sakık said in Parliament on Tuesday evening that it was inappropriate to name the airport Sabiha Gökçen, who was Atatürk's adopted daughter and served as a pilot during the bombing of Dersim. "If you want to make peace with Alevis and Kurds, change that name. Our suggestion is to rename the airport's name to Seyyid Rıza. When you say Sabiha Gökçen, we remember bombs, massacres and genocide," he said.
"Whatever Hitler means for Jewish people, we have similar feelings toward the people responsible for those times," Sakık noted.
MHP Manisa deputy Erkan Akçay voiced opposition to Sakık's suggestion, saying that Gökçen was a "hero," and adding: "People who have animosity toward Sabiha Gökçen hold animosity toward those who established the republic. Those who ask for the name change regarding Gökçen will ask to change the name of Turkey tomorrow."
First official apology for killings in Dersim
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=first-official-apology-for-killings-in-dersim-2011-11-23
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
ANKARA- Hürriyet Daily News
PM Erdoğan makes a historic apology for the late 1930s Dersim killings in the name of the state, but the main opposition is furious
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan apologized yesterday "on the state's behalf" for the Dersim killings in the late 1930s, marking the first time a representative of the Turkish Republic had ever apologized for the attacks.
He insisted that the Republican People's Party (CHP), which ruled Turkey under a single-party regime at the time, was responsible for the military operation in the rebellious Alevi-populated region, the present-day province of Tunceli, and must apologize. "If an apology is required on behalf of the state and if such precedents exist, I am apologizing," Erdoğan said at a meeting of his Justice and Development Party (AKP).
However, he said, "If someone is to apologize for and face up to this tragedy, it is not the AKP and the AKP government but the CHP, the author of this bloody episode, as well as the CHP deputies and the CHP chairman who hails from Tunceli."
The CHP leader withheld any immediate reaction, but his aides promptly issued condemnations.
Doğu Ergil, a political scientist, told the Hürriyet Daily News that the apology was remarkable and that the prime minister should not stop at one apology. "I wonder if Erdoğan would have done the same thing if the perpetrators had been close to his political views," he said. "And the debate should not be limited to Dersim killings. Turkey should apologize for the 1915 Armenian killings and the Sept. 6-7, 1955, events, which resulted in the mass exodus of minorities from the country."
Erdoğan slammed CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu for likening his stance on the Dersim killings to the Armenian diaspora's "genocide" campaign, saying he would "put in his place" anyone who would make such a comparison.
Arguing that the bloodshed in Dersim reflected "the CHP mentality" of oppression, Erdoğan said the Dersim killings had been planned in advance "with all pretexts tailored," contesting the official history line that a rebellion prompted the crackdown.
He referred to an official report that called for "definitive action against the dangerous boil" of Dersim a decade before the crackdown and to papers that put the death toll at 13,800 in the period from 1936 to 1939, in addition to at least as many people forcefully resettled.
Kılıçdaroğlu withheld any immediate reaction, but his aides promptly issued condemnations as the issue continued to stir intra-party tensions.
In a surprise twist, the CHP provincial chairman in Diyarbakır, Muzaffer Değer, extended an apology to the Dersim people after Erdoğan's speech and urged his party to follow suit. But shortly afterwards, a CHP statement said Değer had been removed from the post earlier in the day and his apology had no value on the party's behalf.
In Ankara, CHP Deputy Chairman Gürsel Tekin said: "With his statements, rhetoric and language, the prime minister has placed dynamite at the foundations of our nation's unity."
"An apology into this massacre has been our demand for years, and this is progress," said Cemal Yücel, vice chairman of the Dersim Associations Federation. "The prime minister said archives are open, but the archive of the General Staff is not," he said.
Yusuf Cengiz, head of the Tunceli Chamber of Industry and Commerce, agreed the CHP was responsible for the massacre. "But Erdoğan is not right to put the blame only on the CHP, since it was the sole political party at the time," Cengiz said. "The party meant the state. Both the state and the CHP should do their part for reconciliation."
The first apology and its consequences
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=the-first-apology-and-its-consequences-2011-11-23
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Opinion
MURAT YETKİN - murat.yetkin@hurriyet.com.tr
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's apology over the "Dersim killings" of 1936-39 is the first ever apology of a Turkish official on the gray areas of Turkish history; something of historical importance. Speaking to his ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Parti) organization, Erdoğan revealed that a total of 13,806 people were killed as a result of military operations that were part of a systematic state policy while tens of thousands of them were forced to leave their homes.
We can speculate as to whether Erdoğan would make this statement if he wouldn't get into a fierce war of words on the issue with the main opposition Republican People's Party's (CHP) leader, Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, who is proud of being from Dersim, in order to embarrass him, because killings had been carried out under the then single-party regime of the CHP.
Regardless of the reasons, Erdoğan's revelation is an important one and it will have consequences.
1- This historical statement by a Turkish official could trigger apologies in other blurred areas of Turkish history, since a psychological threshold has been crossed with this apology. This apology will bear significance for Armenian communities claiming that the 1915 killings were a result of a genocide policy by the Ottoman government of the day, among Jewish communities who had suffered a lot from the dispossession operation under a "Wealth Tax" declared in 1942 during World War II, Greek communities who suffered from the looting and vandalism events of 1955 and unsolved murder cases in the fight against the armed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) operations in the 1990s.
2- Perhaps only a part of those killed in Dersim operations were of Kurdish origin. The dominant majority of them (either of Turkish, Kurdish, Zaza or converted Armenian origin) were Alevis. So this apology will force the Erdoğan government and governments after him to reveal the state archival information on clashes between the Alevi religious minority and the Sunni majority in the 1970s – the Kahramanmaraş killings of 1977 being the most awful one after which the incidents which led Turkey toward the 1980 military coup.
3- Erdoğan's statement comes at a time when Turkey is putting immense pressure on Syria under the rule of Bashar al-Assad, representing the Nusayri minority, which is a version of the Alevi faith. Erdoğan has accused Kılıçdaroğlu of supporting Assad, implying that they share the same belief. The Dersim incidents have a historical dimension as well. In the mid-1930s, Hatay, bordering Syria, was formally an autonomous region under a French mandate. Ankara had at the time suspected that the Dersim incidents had been a foreign provocation in response to its Hatay campaign. Hatay joined Turkey through a plebiscite in 1939, the same year that the Dersim operations were concluded.
This first ever apology of a Turkish official because of the wrongdoings of the past is likely to have political and social ramifications in Turkish society.
Dersim Massacre
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dersim_Massacre
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