TURKEY

The first hearing is being held of case where 35 members of ÇArşı supporters’ group are being tried for “attempting to take over the Prime Minister’s Office and carry out a military coup” during Gezi resistance

7 of those detained in the operation of the Istanbul Police against the ‘parallel state structure’ have been released, 23 remain in custody. The EU and the US criticized the operation, while PM Davutoğlu made his first statement on the raids.

Armenians living in other countries of the world will join to commemorative event to be held on April 24, 2015, in Istanbul. “Our presence in Istanbul will be a form of resistance to erasure and denial,” says Project 2015 board member Nancy Kricorian.

Sevan Nişanyan’s prison sentence has been increased to 11 years and 8 months. According to Nişanyan’s lawyer Murat Akçı, if the Constitutional Court does not produce an expected ruling, Nişanyan might stay in prison for years. There is not a single other case in which a person is held in a closed prison for the crime Nişanyan is charged with.

Following the Ministry of Culture’s announcement of a tender for the construction of a madrasa in the courtyard of Hagia Sophia, The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) has declared that the Hagia Sophia’s status as “World Heritage Site” will be reassessed if the madrasa is built.

The files belonging to Armenians that stayed at the Aleppo , which was founded to provide shelter to Armenians who escaped the Armenian Genocide, have been translated into and published in Turkish with the title ‘Aleppo Shelter 1922-1927’. Published by Alfa Yayınları, the book was edited by the former General Staff ATASE Presidency Archive Department Director Ahmet Tetik, and publisher Cihan Güneş.