Syriacs have lived for about 5,000 years in the provinces of Mardin, Batman and Şırnak, and some migrated to various foreign countries because of the fighting between the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) and Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorists that broke out in the region in 1980. The other reason behind the migration was the unsolved murders of about 50 Syriac individuals that occurred between 1985 and 1995. As a result, 2,845 Syriac families migrated to various European countries due to a lack of safety in the region.

However, with the reduction of terrorist activities in the region, some Syriac families started to return to their homeland in the 2000s. Ninety-one of 2,845 Syriac families returned to their homes in eastern and southeastern Turkey.

Speaking to the Radikal daily, some returnees said they are happy to come back to Turkey but complain about a lack of infrastructure in their hometowns. They also say that young people are having problems adapting to the region because they had been born and raised in Europe.

Priest Saliba Erden, a Syriac who returned to Turkey after living in Switzerland for about 20 years, said that his children, who were born and grew up in Switzerland, have had many problems adapting to their new home. Erden said, “In order to overcome these problems, we have built modern houses in the villages, but when my children go out, they see the ruined village of Şırnak.”

Saying that they had to migrate in 1984 to Switzerland from Şırnak’s Basibrin village, Erden added: “Our return has improved the morale of Syriac families who wanted to migrate from the village but gave up on going. We rebuilt 15 houses and repaired another 17 in the village.”

“The most prominent problem in the village is now infrastructure deficiencies and ignorance. My daughter had to go to Germany to continue her education because girls have difficulties getting an education in the region due to some ignorant beliefs,” Erden noted.

Erden said that although there have been some developments in providing water and electricity through the initiatives of the İdil district governorate, some problems remain in the village with the drainage system and road construction.

Aziz Demir, another Syriac who returned from Europe in 2006 to his native Kafro village in Mardin, said when they returned to their village, no one lived there anymore because it had been declared a “prohibited area” due to terrorism activities during the ’80s. He said he struggled to get the prohibition on the village removed through diplomatic channels and eventually succeeded. Demir added that after he built his house and installed electrical wiring and a water supply system for the village, 12 families returned to live in Kafro.

Noting that they had to migrate in 1985 because they were caught between the PKK and the state’s forces, Demir said: “My homeland and history are here [in Kafro village]. We had to go, but when conditions improved in the region, we came back.” Demir also said that he has two children, now aged 18 and 21, who experienced problems adapting, but they have begun to overcome them.

Returning to Ahvil village in Mardin’s Midyat district in 2010, Tuma Çelik said he does not regret returning to his hometown, even though most of the houses had collapsed and were in bad condition, and the village also has some deficiencies in infrastructure.

Saying that he was asked by the villagers to be the mukhtar (head) of the village, Çelik added: “Syriac communities and Muslim communities are getting along well now, and they represent an example for people in the other parts of Turkey. The Muslims’ act of making me a mukhtar of the village is a sign of this peace.”

via Syriacs returning to Turkey after 1980s migration to Europe.

The renovation work of the Church, which was part of the “Istanbul: European Capital of Culture 2010” Project, roughly cost $1.5 million. 70 percent of the renovation expenses were reportedly covered by the Turkish government and 30 percent by the Armenian Church Foundation in Istanbul.

The Church is now expected to be open to regular religious services under the direction of the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey. It will also serve as a cultural center.

Built in the early 19th century, the Church of Vorvotz Vorotman is one of many Christian heritage sites that Turkey has renovated in recent years.

Turkish Coalition of America

The Special Prosecutor’s Office investigated various documents and CDs that contained revised jihadist plans. The new jihad plan was allegedly to focus attacks in Turkey before moving on to other countries including the United States.

Among the plans and sketches seized earlier this year was a list of Christian workers living in Ankara. Christian leaders in the area were shocked when they heard.

“No one has had any news about this until now,” said one Christian worker.

The Taraf reports that some of the militants were tracked for as long as six months. Along with detailed maps, assault rifles, and ammunition, over 1,500 pounds of explosives were seized over the course of the investigation.

Members of the terrorist group were instructed by Al Qaeda not to enrol in Turkey’s military, send their children to public schools, or recognize the authority of Turkish courts. There were also guidelines for what to do if arrested.

For more information, read Compass’ article here. For more information on the trials Christians face in Turkey, click here.

via The Voice of the Martyrs Canada: Al Qaeda planned to bomb churches in Turkey’s capital.

Jan. 6 – Greek Orthodox Christians brave the cold waters of the Bosphorus to compete for a wooden crucifix in a traditional Epiphany ceremony. Rough Cut (no reporter narration)

January 1, 2012 | More on Conflict and security, Middle East and North Africa | No comments

To find out how world peace was coming along I rose early this morning (not easy after a New Year’s Eve engaged in one of the marathon rakı and cards sessions of which middle-aged Turks are so fond) to attend mass at the local Armenian church.

That it is possible to write such a sentence is a small miracle. A century ago, the port town of Iskenderun in southern Turkey had a thriving population of Armenians. Today there are just one hundred left – ten of them joined me, bleary-eyed, at mass. Their church, founded in the late nineteenth century, reopened in 2011 having been closed for decades due to the absence of a priest. It owes its resurrection to an earnest young member of the community who, fearful that without a focal point the old traditions would die out, decided to fill the gap, and went to Lebanon and Jerusalem to be trained as a priest. He now ministers to the small church of Iskenderun and the even smaller chapel of a nearby village, the last Armenian settlement in Turkey.

During a break in the three hour-long service, the elderly man sitting next to me introduces himself and asks my business. Within a minute or two, unprompted, he remarks that ‘this country has done terrible things to Christians.’ In 1916, he tells me, his parents had been forced to flee to Iskenderun from the interior. Turkish soldiers were killing Armenians in the surrounding region, and in anticipation of the troops’ arrival the people of his village had begun to join in. This was the beginning of a series of events described by Armenians and most of the world as genocide and by Turks, unconvincingly, as war. At least a million people are thought to have died in the ensuing months. Iskenderun itself was not immune to the killings, the old man says, but because it was a French protectorate at the time it provided a safer haven than much of the rest of the country.

Today the town continues to be a welcoming home to its small Armenian population. The priest tells me that he and his congregants have no problems with their fellow townspeople, nearly all of whom are Turks, and that Iskenderun is a fine place for Armenians to live. In recent months the oafish political posturing of Sarkozy has dominated the Armenia-Turkey debate, but as we enter what is likely to be a turbulent new year the resilience and endurance of Iskenderun’s Armenian community tells a more positive, constructive story. A Happy New Year to all.

via Armenians in Turkey: an unextinguished light – Global Dashboard – Blog covering International affairs and global risks.

Murdered journalist and human rights activist Hrant Dink also received an education at the Tuzla orphanage and contributed to its construction with his brothers.

No formal reasons were ever provided as to why the orphanage lands had been expropriated, Ağabaloğlu said. “The state wants us to prove the title deeds of properties it expropriated. The state already knows why and what it expropriated. All the documents and title deeds are in their possession,” he said.

via Istanbul Armenian Church Seeks Return of Tuzla Orphanage | Hetq online.

For the Geo Quiz we are looking for a province in southern Turkey about the size of Delaware.

The province used to be part of Syria once, but was ceded to Turkey in 1939.

It is an ethically diverse province and even includes a village with a 100 percent ethnic Armenian population.

The capital of the province is the city of Antakya.

Hatay is the answer to the Geo Quiz.

Hatay is home to the only village in Turkey that is populated solely by ethnic Armenians considering that most ethnic Armenians, in what was then the Ottoman empire, fled or were killed or ethnically cleansed in 1915.

Reporter Matthew Brunwasser paid the village a visit.

Bitterness over the 1915 Armenian massacres and ethnic cleansing in Turkey by then Ottoman forces is still unresolved. But Turkey’s last remaining village inhabited solely by ethnic Armenians is a seriously peaceful place. Vafikli Koyu today attracts visitors with its pretty views, excellent climate and tasty organic produce.

It’s a balmy Sunday in Vakifli Koyu, a sleepy village on a lush mountaintop overlooking the Mediterranean. The air smells like orange blossoms and the townsfolk, all 135 of them, never seem to hurry.

It feels like it could be any Sunday from over the centuries, as services start at the St. Astvatzatzin Armenian Apostolic Church. But today there is big news. The village has a new resident priest for the first time in 11 years. And today is his first service.

Father Avedis Tabashyan was born and raised nearby. He is 31 and excited about his new job.

“I think more worshipers will come to church because there will be regular services,” says Tabashyan. “The spiritual life of the people will improve because they have a priest now with whom they can share their problems.”

The village looks and feels more prosperous than its neighbors – largely due to the money sent by family members working abroad. There is also innovation here. The village was one of the first in Turkey to start growing organic oranges in 2004. Tabashyan says most of the young people have left and the remaining villagers have realistic expectations.

“Agriculture doesn’t bring us much money so the population will continue to shrink,” he says. But even if there are only 50 people left in the village, there will still be Armenians here. And whenever there is a holiday those who have left will always remember the village and many will come back.

A historical Ottoman-era building, crumbling and neglected. (Photo: Matthew Brunwasser)

The village has a special history. In 1915, locals say, Armenians from the area held off Ottoman Turkish forces for 53 days. They signalled a passing French warship by hanging a banner on the mountaintop and were rescued. When the province became part of Turkey in 1939, only the residents of Vakifli Koyu decided to return. Today, villager Stepanos Chaparyan says they’ve mixed in nicely with their Muslim Turkish neighbors.

“There’s a little difference, but our traditions are very similar,” Chaparyan says. “We go to each others villages for weddings and religious festivals and there’s no problems at all.”

The village is tranquil. The runoff from village farms flows down steep stone steps, carved into the mountainside along the village’s streets.

It’s also a small village. Taking a short walk, I run into Chaparyan again, sitting on a bench and playing a wooden folk flute.

The song he’s playing is emblematic of the painful relations between Turks and Armenians, sari gelin or “blond bride” in Turkish.

“Sari gelin, sari” says Chaparyan. “It’s a song both Turks and Armenians share. The real meaning in Armenian is ‘mountain bride.’”

A documentary film using the name of the song, produced by Turks, promotes the Turkish nationalist perspective that Armenians were in fact the aggressors in the bloody events of 1915. But the people of Vakifli Koyu can’t be bothered. They’re more concerned about business.

Gohar Kartun is selling jars of locally grown and prepared food products to the crowds of Sunday tourists who like to shop here.

1187 Gohar Kartun selling locally-produced preserved fruit and vegetables, oils, sauces and juices on behalf of the Vakifli Koyu’s women’s collective. (Photo: Matthew Brunwasser)

Kartun says that visitors come with a wide range of expectations. She says many Turks have never met an Armenian before and their curiosity can make her feel like she’s in a zoo.

“Sometimes, sometimes,” Kartun says. “It depends on the questions they are asking. Not everyone looks through the same window. Some of them say, ‘we are so happy to see Armenians in our Turkey.’ They want to come and see what kind of creatures we are.”

Kartun says that tourism is one economic bright spot for Vakifli Koyu. The main attraction in the Hatay region is the nearby ancient city of Antakya, Antioch in the bible. The province also has one of Turkey’s most multi-cultural populations, including Turks, Arabs, Christians of various denominations, Alevi and Sunni Muslims.

“Hatay is a rainbow and we are one of the colors. And I’m trying to show it to the world, ” Kartun says.

As Turkey matures politically and moves away from the ethnic nationalism of its founders, minorities like Armenians hope that Turks learn to appreciate diversity. Locals want people to think of Vakifli Koyu as nothing more than a place for a relaxing weekend stroll.

http://www.theworld.org/2011/12/in-turkeys-last-armenian-village-a-place-to-get-away-from-it-all/

And to mark 550 years of the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, a top Turkish musician has been doing what he does best, in an anniversary concert.

“As a son of this land, together with the Turkish classical military band and representatives of three big religions, we will play and perform a Jewish psalm, then a Christian psalm and a Muslim psalm,” said classical pianist and composer Tuluyhan Ugurlu in a break from rehearsals.

Euronews

The Bulgarian “Saint Stephen” Church in Istanbul, Turkey, is the only cast-iron church in the world. Photo by wikipedia

A number of schools and organizations across Bulgaria are taking part in a large-scale donation campaign titled “Let’s Preserve the Bulgarian St. Stephen Church in Istanbul.”

The Bulgarian Church in Istanbul is celebrating Tuesday the day of its patron.

The campaign is organized under the initiative of the Foundation “Bulgarian Orthodox Temple St. Stephen in Istanbul.”

The goal is to collect enough funds to fully restore the Church’s iconostasis, which had not been touched in the last 113 years.

The restoration includes applying of a new gold leaf, accurate reconstruction of the damaged segments of the iconostasis, cleaning and preservation.

The project will be carried out by Turkish specialists in the restoration of historic monuments, while Bulgaria will send an expert in the field as observer. The amount needed to implement all stages of the restoration of the iconostasis is estimated at EUR 75 000.

The Church was inaugurated in 1898 by Exarch Joseph and marks the beginning of the Bulgarian exarchate. It is also the main worship place of Bulgarian Christian Orthodox in Turkey.

The St. Stephen Day mass is traditionally attended by high-ranking Bulgarian clergy, by Orthodox Bulgarians, living in the city, and Bulgarian tourists.

Last year, the dome of the church was gold-plated thanks to a donation of Bulgarians from Plovdiv. Bulgarians living in Istanbul now say the church is the only one in the city having a gold-covered dome.

Four years ago, St. Stephen was declared the most beautiful church in Turkey. Architects call it a unique building. It is also the only cast-iron church in the world.

Right before Christmas 2010, the Istanbul City Hall announced it will use municipal funds to repair the temple.

via Bulgaria Campaigns to Restore Istanbul Iron Church: Bulgaria Campaigns to Restore Istanbul Iron Church – Novinite.com – Sofia News Agency.

In his Christmas Day sermon, Dr Rowan Williams said: “The most pressing question we now face… is who and where we are as a society.”

Riots in August were sparked by the shooting of Mark Duggan by police.

The head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, Vincent Nichols, has offered prayers for Palestinians.

During his Christmas Mass sermon at Westminster Cathedral, Archbishop Nichols focused on 50 Palestinian families in the West Bank who he said faced losing their land to Israel.

He said: “At this moment the people of the parish of Beit Jala in Bethlehem prepare for their legal battle to protect their homes and their land from further expropriation from Israel… we pray for them tonight.”

In his sermon at Canterbury Cathedral the Archbishop said: “Bonds have been broken, trust abused and lost.

“Whether it is an urban rioter, mindlessly burning down a small shop that serves his community, or a speculator turning his back on the question of who bears the ultimate cost for his acquisitive adventures in the virtual reality of today’s financial world, the picture is of atoms spinning apart in the dark.”

Since October, the Church of England has had to handle the anti-capitalist encampment near St Paul’s Cathedral.

The Canon Chancellor of St Paul’s, Dr Giles Fraser, initially supported the Occupy London protest but later resigned amid suggestions of a rift between senior clergy.

The Book of Common Prayer celebrates its 350th anniversary next year and Reverend Williams quoted from it in his sermon.

“If ye shall perceive your offences to be such as are not only against God but also against your neighbours; then ye shall reconcile yourselves unto them; being ready to make restitution,” he said.

‘Mysteries of faith’

The Archbishop said the language of the Prayer Book may sound dated but he said: “Before we draw the easy and cynical conclusion that the Prayer Book is about social control by the ruling classes, we need to ponder the uncompromising way in which those same ruling classes are reminded of what their power is for, from the monarch downwards.

“And the almost forgotten words of the Long Exhortation in the Communion Service, telling people what questions they should ask themselves before coming to the Sacrament, show a keen critical awareness of the new economic order that, in the mid 16th century, was piling up assets of land and property in the hands of a smaller and smaller elite.”

The Archbishop said: “The Prayer Book is a treasury of words and phrases that are still for countless English-speaking people the nearest you can come to an adequate language for the mysteries of faith.”

The Archbishop also urged people not build lives based on selfishness and fear.

The reference to the riots is not the first time Dr Williams has addressed the subject.

Last month, he wrote in The Guardian about the “enormous sadness” he felt during the riots.

But in the same article he said the government should do more to rescue young people “who think they have nothing to lose”.

Dr Williams also said recently he was sympathetic to a “Robin Hood” tax on some financial transactions.

BBC