Istanbul’s Camp Armen Attacked

Activists occupying the grounds of Camp Armen, the former Armenian summer camp located in the Tuzla district of Istanbul, were attacked on the 100th day of their live-in demonstration. According to a statement released by the Armenian Nor Zartonk movement of Istanbul, two activists were attacked and beaten with sticks.

 Soon after the attack, the Nor Zartonk movement shared a photo of a group of protesters with the caption 'Racist/Fascist attacks will not intimidate us.'
Soon after the attack, the Nor Zartonk movement shared a photo of the group of protesters with the caption ‘Racist/Fascist attacks will not intimidate us.’

The attack took place on the night of Aug. 13 at around 11:30 p.m., according to the statement. “This attack, which is a manifestation of a genocidal mentality, cannot break our resolve. We publicly announce today that we will continue our struggle with the same determination,” read part of the statement, which also called on the public to stand in solidarity with the protesters.

One Armenian member of Turkey’s Parliament, Garo Paylan of the pro-Kurdish People’s Democratic Party (HDP), tweeted that some of the activists had sustained injuries, and urged the public to show their support. Soon after the attack, the Nor Zartonk movement shared a photo of a group of activists with the caption, “Racist/Fascist attacks will not intimidate us.”

The Nor Zartonk Armenian movement of Istanbul has led a campaign to occupy the grounds of the camp since bulldozers arrived to demolish it in early May. After weeks of protest, the current owner of the campground, Fatih Ulusoy, said he would sign the transfer of the property over to the Gedikpaşa Armenian Evangelical Church Foundation. As of this writing, however, that deed has not yet been transferred.

5 Comments

  1. Erdogan wants to use all these attacks on Armenians, Kurds, leftists and Alavies for his propaganda of the planed elections. In addition, he already detained hundreds of Kurdish activists in the Kurdish region and deployed security forces and military there in order to intimidate people during the elections and cheat the elections. Then Erdogan will have the freedom to change the constitution to have the power of a bloody Sultan!

  2. Bravo to these activists for holding ground in spite of difficulties.
    Hrant Dink’s heart and soul are ever present on those hallowed grounds.
    Shame shame on the Turkish government for dragging this on when they could end it all in one second.

  3. I don’t think that any Turkish government now or in the future would be correct enough to end attacks on Armenians, now or in the future. What can we expect while even the genocide on the Ottoman Christians hasn’t been recognized yet. Sad country.

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