Dr. Karena Avedissian, political scientist and researcher, shares insights from her recent visit to the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria, also known as Rojava—a trip made possible with the support of the Gulbenkian Foundation. There, she met with Islamized Armenians, descendants of Genocide survivors who were forcibly assimilated during and after 1915. She explains how this hidden diaspora is now reemerging and reclaiming its Armenian identity through community, language, and armed self-defense, all within Rojava’s inclusive, multi-ethnic political system. Avedissian discusses the challenges they face, from rejection by the Armenian Church to the ongoing threat of Turkish aggression, and why their story matters for the broader Armenian world.
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Ronald Suny: “Empires and the Making of Nations in the
Ronald Grigor Suny, a distinguished professor of history at the University of Michigan and emeritus professor of political science and history at the University of Chicago, delivered a speech on June 25 in Batumi at a symposium organized by the Monterey Initiative in Russian Studies at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. The 2025 Monterey Summer Symposium on Russia took place in Batumi, Yerevan, and Tbilisi from June 25 to July 13.
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22nd Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival kicks off
The 22nd edition of the Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival has officially begun. This annual celebration of cinema is taking place from July 13 to 20, and as always, it will present competition films from various countries, along with selections from some of the world’s most prestigious film festivals, such as Cannes and Berlin. Renowned figures from the global film industry have arrived in Armenia to share their expertise and artistry with local cinephiles.
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Armenian flower growers sound alarm as Russian imports ban persists
By Alexander Pracht A growing sense of alarm is spreading among Armenia’s flower producers, as Russia’s ban on floral imports from the country, introduced last month, remains in effect. Last Friday, dozens of greenhouse owners in Armavir province, one of Armenia’s main floriculture hubs, staged a protest demanding swift government action to resolve the standoff with Russia. The demonstrators, who rely heavily on the Russian market, warned that without a breakthrough, they would escalate their protest by blocking a highway to Yerevan. “I don’t know what I’m going to do with my 60,000 flowers that are about to blossom,” one […]
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Jailed Armenian tycoon Karapetyan signals launch of new political force
By Zhanna Avagyan Jailed Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetyan has announced plans to form a new political force, marking his most direct challenge yet to Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government. In a statement released on Monday, Karapetyan said his team was beginning the process of establishing a political force aimed at uniting the public around “justice and a better future.” “I deeply respect the political forces and figures who have fought against Nikol Pashinyan’s anti-national regime,” the statement read. “But we have our own vision for building a better Armenia. We will move forward with our own team, without ruling out […]
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Yerevan protest calls for urgent action for Artsakh Armenians
On July 12, demonstrators gathered in Freedom Square in Yerevan to protest the Armenian government’s declining support for displaced Artsakh Armenians. The rally drew roughly hundreds of people and included both Armenians from Artsakh and others showing solidarity.
5 Comments
An Armenian can be Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Zoroastrian, agnostic, atheist, or even Muslim. All humans can be good or evil. Our religion should not be a factor that defines us as a nation. Armenia needs to be a free, secular, and progressive country like Canada that is governed by the law, so that it may join the list of economically prosperous countries.
Armenians from Armenia roast Armenians who dont speak Armenian. Allowing Azeries into Armenia is pretty much suicide for armenia. Most so.called refugees from soviet armenia are dead. Its moot point opening doors for already brainwashed azeris
These islamasized Armenians need to move to Armenia and become Christians if they are afraid to be Christians in Syria.
A person can’t be a moslem and Armenian. Armenian culture is overwhelming based on its Christian faith from the founding of the alphabet to the genocide.
Dr. Avedissian is absolutely correct in reaching out to islamized Armenians in Syria, Iraq and Turkey. Instead of being welcoming, it’s a shame that the Armenian church further isolates these Armenians. Christ would’ve welcomed them with open arms. We need to reform our church and bring to the 21st century.
There are many islamized Armenians in Anatolia region, as well. Apparently, the Turkish government is aware of their presence and can locate them easily by the unique number assigned in their national identification cards. In today’s modern Turkey, it doesn’t matter if an Armenian or Greek has changed his/her religion to become part of the majority Muslim communities for better treatment. What matters is the ethnicity of the person which further adds insult to the injury.