TURKEY

By Denho Bar Mourad-Özmen journalist and moderator at Suroyo TV  Macsarto ܡܰܥܣܰܪ̈ܬܐ (Ömerli) Macsarto (Ömerli) is a city and district in Mardin province, southeastern Turkey, and is located in the historic Syriac homeland of Tur Abdin. The Syriac name Macsarto ܡܰܥܣܰܪ̈ܬܐ (in the Mhalmi Arabic vernacular معسرتة) means ‘wine press’…

In an article for Foreign Policy, Stephen Cook, columnist and Eni Enrico Mattei senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, argues that Turkey’s attempts at the rapprochement with countries in the Middle East will be short-lived and have only come as a result…

ZALIN, Syria — Not long after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s remarks that his government plans to return 1 million Syrian refugees from Turkey to Turkish-occupied areas in northern Syria, Turkish opposition parties denounced the plan which they called spiteful due to its violation of the international right of asylum…

STRASBOURG, France — Following the 25 April decision of a Turkish court to sentence prominent businessman, philanthropist, and activist Osman Kavala to life in prison on charges of “attempting to overthrow the government” for supporting protests in 2013, the European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning the sentencing and called on…

TRABZON, Turkey — Following six-months of work to secure some 360 tons of rock mass to the cliffside, the Sumela Monastery in the Black Sea province of Trabzon has reopened for visitors on 1 May. Previous restoration work undertaken by the Turkish government in 1991 was found in 2007 to…

By Denho Bar Mourad-Özmen journalist and moderator at Suroyo TV  The city of Sawro is located in the middle of the Mhalmoyto Region and is already mentioned by the Assyrian king Ashurnasirpal II as an important city. Its name is derived from the Syriac (Aramaic) word Sawro ܨܰܘܪܳܐ , which…

OMID (DIYARBAKIR), Turkey – With the laying on of hands by Bishop of the Chaldean Church Remzi Karmo, Iraqi Syriac deacon Fahid Aal Murad has been ordained a priest and pastoral shepherd for the Diocese of Omid in southeastern Turkey. Bishop Karmo was assisted during the ordination ceremony, held at…

TUR ABDIN, Turkey – On Easter Monday, Syriacs traditionally gather at the graves of their departed loved ones. In the Syriac homeland of Tur Abdin, young and old took to the cemeteries in Midyad, Midin, and Mzizah to pray, remember, to show their generosity in the name of the dead,…

WASHINGTON, D.C. / MONTEVIDEO — On 24 April each year, the Syriac (Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean), Armenian, Greek peoples commemorate the anniversary of the 1915 Genocide committed by the Ottoman Empire against the non-Muslim population, predominantly Christians but also Yezidis. The atrocities claimed the lives of millions. On Sunday, U.S. President Joe Biden…

NORTH AND EAST SYRIA — The Future Syria Party issued a statement on Wednesday saying that Turkey’s objectives in Syria and Iraq are clear: occupation and Turkification. The statement urged the people of both countries to unite against the Turkish colonial project. The full statement from the Future Syria Party…