Armenian diaspora flows into Istanbul today for Hrant Dink's funeral

With ethnically Armenian journalist Hrant Dink being laid to rest today in Istanbul after his murder on an Istanbul street on Friday afternoon, a full plane load of Armenian citizens from Yerevan is expected to arrive today in Turkey to attend funeral services.

In addition, though Armenian President Robert Kocharian is not himself attending, he will be sending his top level consultant, Samson Ozarat, who emigrated from Turkey to Armenia some years ago, to attend the funeral. Also in attendance will be Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Arman Kirakosian, as well as the General Secretary of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Foundation, Karen Mirzoyan. From France, which has a strong Armenian community of its own, the head of the French Armenian Foundation, Alexi Govcian, will arrive in Turkey with a delegation, as will Armenian religious leaders from both Bulgaria and Romania.

Patriarch Karekin II represented by Barsamian

Arriving at Istanbul's Ataturk Airport yesterday was Armenian Patriarch Hajak Barsamian, the Orthodox leader of Armenians living on the East Coast of the US, and who arrived in Turkey as the official representative of Patriarch Karekin II, the world leader of the Armenian community.

yes, I knew that

Here more details:
http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/world/20070123-1311-turkey-journalistkilled.html

http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-ex-funeral23jan24,1,6648184.story?coll=la-headlines-world&track=crosspromo

http://www.archaeologychannel.org/content/video/dameuph_300kR.html

VIEWS OF KONYA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tdv3VCTcPxU&mode=related&search=

THE TOLERANT ISLAM OF MEVLANA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNb7SpkOsgg&mode=related&search=

The bitter irony is that the Dink never said "Turkish blood is dirty". In the article for which he was convicted, he had exhorted Armenians to "purify their blood of hatred for the Turks". In court Dink maintained that it was "a call for peace", but nationalists bent on punishing him for his prominence insisted that he was guilty. The garbling of his words in the media made his personal situation, in a country which, despite its size and growing wealth, remains morbidly sensitive to humiliation, increasingly perilous.

Six other suspects were arrested at the same time as Mr Samast and were being questioned in Istanbul yesterday. Minors are often employed as hit-men in Turkey because they are interrogated by public prosecutors instead of police and minors' courts tend to hand out milder sentences

THE MOST CONSERVATIVE ISLAMIC NEIGHBOURHOODS FEATURE A STRONG CHRISTIAN AND JEWISH HERITAGE.

West of Sultanahmet and the Bazaar Quarter are some of the most religiously conservative neighbourhoods in Istanbul. In areas such as Fatih, Fener and Balat, headscarves, chadors and the baggy falvar trousers worn by devout men are much in evidence. But although now Islamic strongholds, these areas also provide a reminder that until as recently as the early 20th century, Christians and Jews made up some 40 per cent of Istanbul's population: the districts are sprinkled with churches, synagogues and Greek Orthodox schools. Also out this way is the Church of St Saviour in Chora, one of the city's most dazzling Byzantine monuments. Beyond the ancient city walls, the mosque at Eyüp offers a glimpse of a working pilgrimage site, with stunning views from the top of the hill behind. Visitors should dress modestly.

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