YEREVAN: Tens of thousands of Armenians led by opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan marched on Tuesday to honour 1.5 million of their kin killed by Ottoman forces in 1915, a day after the country's prime minister resigned following more than a week of opposition rallies.
The commemorations, which are a hugely emotional event for the South Caucasus country, came after Serzh Sarkisian on Monday stunned the country by standing down from his new post as prime minister.
Sarkisian, who had previously spent a decade in power as president, was accused of a blatant power grab by the opposition, who staged days of rallies in protest.
Clutching a purple rose, the bearded Pashinyan, 42, led a huge crowd of his supporters on a commemorative march to a hilltop memorial in the capital Yerevan to honour the victims of the World War I-era killings.
Sporting his trademark khaki-coloured T-shirt and a bandaged hand, Pashinyan -- who on Wednesday is expected to hold talks on the transfer of power -- called on the marchers to avoid shouting political slogans.
The acting head of government, Karen Karapetyan, appealed for unity after the wrenching political turmoil in a country locked in a simmering territorial conflict with Azerbaijan.
Russia -- which has a military base in Armenia -- appealed for stability but said it would not interfere.
Many Armenians said it was important the country managed to avoid bloodletting ahead of the highly symbolic commemorations.
"Thank God Armenian blood was not shed on the eve of the Genocide Remembrance Day," Seyran Halachyan, 58, told AFP at the foot of the hilltop memorial, the country's most visited landmark.
Ashot Minasyan, 72, said he was grateful to Sarkisian for not crushing peaceful protests and "leaving without bloodshed".
Acting government head Karapetyan thanked all political forces for heeding his call for unity.
"We are going through a difficult new phase in our history," he said in a statement.
"Today we show the world that despite difficulties and unresolved domestic issues we are together and united. This is our duty to the genocide's innocent victims."
Earlier in the day he also held official commemorations at the hilltop Tsitsernakaberd memorial, with thousands laying flowers at the monument.
Protest leader Pashinyan said that on Tuesday he would conduct "political consultations" to discuss a number of concrete steps so that a people's victory "could be legally guaranteed".
He has said that parliament would have to elect a new prime minister within a week and that snap parliamentary elections were also on the cards.
Many said they felt mixed emotions because the impoverished country's future was uncertain.
"I've been thinking from the start of the day that everything is just beginning," said Asya Bagdasaryan, 43.
"What awaits us in the future? Will there be new shocks?"
Armenia -- which depends on investment and aid from Russia -- over the past few years has been hit hard by economic troubles in the former Soviet master.
Unemployment in Armenia stood at 18 percent last year. The opposition says some 290,000 people have left the country since Sarkisian came to power in 2008.
Political turmoil enveloped the impoverished country of 2.9 million people after Sarkisian was last week elected prime minister by lawmakers after serving two successive presidential terms.
The opposition charged that the 63-year-old wanted to extend his grip on power under a new parliamentary system of government, saying he failed to tackle poverty and corruption.
Protests broke out several days before his expected election, with tens of thousands of people eventually taking to the streets of Yerevan and other cities in largely peaceful protests.
Sarkisian initially refused to resign but quit on the 11th day of demonstrations after a number of serving servicemen joined the marches.
His resignation came as a shock, with analysts saying just last week that the opposition did not have enough resources to force the veteran leader to quit.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed hope that the country's new leader would suit "all forces representing the Armenian people".
A spokesman for Azerbajan's foreign ministry expressed the hope that new Armenian authorities would adopt a "constructive" approach over the breakaway region of Nagorny Karabakh.
Armenia unites to mark Ottoman massacres after leader quits
Armenia unites to mark Ottoman massacres after leader quits
- Protest leader said that he would conduct "political consultations" to discuss a number of concrete steps.
- Unemployment in Armenia stood at 18 percent last year.
Iran threats in UK ‘significantly increased’: Intel watchdog
London’s response has been too focused on “crisis management,” said parliament’s intelligence and security committee, with concerns over Iran’s nuclear program dominating their attention too much.
Tehran swiftly issued a “categorical rejection of the unfounded, politically motivated and hostile allegations.”
The committee’s claims were “baseless, irresponsible, and reflective of a broader pattern of distortion intended to malign Iran’s legitimate regional and national interests,” said its London embassy.
The report comes after growing alarm in Britain at alleged Iranian targeting of dissidents, media organizations and journalists in the UK, including accusations of physical attacks.
Iran in March became the first country to be placed on an enhanced tier of the Foreign Influence Registration Scheme, which aims to boost Britain’s national security against covert foreign influences.
It requires all persons working inside the country for Iran, its intelligence services or the Revolutionary Guard to register on a new list or face jail.
“Iran poses a wide-ranging, persistent and unpredictable threat to the UK, UK nationals, and UK interests,” Kevan Jones, chairman of the watchdog committee, said in the report’s conclusions.
“Iran has a high appetite for risk when conducting offensive activity and its intelligence services are ferociously well-resourced with significant areas of asymmetric strength.”
Jones said it bolstered this through proxy groups, “including criminal networks, militant and terrorist organizations, and private cyber actors” to allow for deniability.
His committee’s report said that while Iran’s UK activity “appears to be less strategic and on a smaller scale than Russia and China,” it “should not be underestimated.”
The physical threat posed had “significantly increased” in pace and volume, and was “focused acutely on dissidents and other opponents of the regime” as well as Jewish and Israeli interests in the UK, it said.
“The Iranian Intelligence Services have shown that they are willing and able — often through third-party agents — to attempt assassination within the UK, and kidnap from the UK,” the report said.
“There have been at least 15 attempts at murder or kidnap against British nationals or UK-based individuals since the beginning of 2022.”
Similarly, security minister Dan Jarvis said in March Britain’s MI5 domestic intelligence service had tallied 20 Iran-backed plots “presenting potentially lethal threats to British citizens and UK residents.”
The watchdog committee took evidence for two years from August 2021 for its report, a period which saw Tehran implicated in a plot to kill two London-based Iran International television anchors.
In March last year one of the Persian-language outlet’s journalists was stabbed outside his London home.
Two Romanian men have been charged in relation to the attack and face extradition to the UK to stand trial.
The counter-terrorism unit of London’s Metropolitan Police led the investigation. Iran’s charge d’affaires in the UK has said that the Tehran authorities “deny any link” to the incident.
Filipinos push back against growing Israeli presence on popular tourist island
- Siargao is a premier surfing site and one of the Philippines’ top tourist destinations
- Facebook users accuse Israeli tourists of disrespecting local rules, harassing residents
MANILA: Concerns over the presence of Israeli visitors are growing on a southern Philippine island, locals say, as they protest plans to establish an Israeli community center amid fears of displacement and reports of tourist misconduct.
Siargao — a resort island off Surigao del Norte province in Mindanao — is the Philippines’ premier surfing site and one of the country’s top tourist destinations.
It has lately become popular among Israelis, whose arrival over the past few months has resulted in numerous complaints. Siargao-based singer and community organizer Maria Lalaine Tokong went viral last week when she highlighted that many of the tourists were “disregarding the culture, the customs,” of the place.
“We are feeling less at home in our home,” she wrote. “I speak up because I refuse to let our identity, our peace, and our safety be erased.”
Tokong’s post has since resulted in tens of thousands of interactions, with Filipinos sharing similar concerns.
It came against the backdrop of Israeli plans to open a Chabad house — a Jewish community center and place of worship — on the island. The plans have been opposed by the local community, which met Israeli embassy representatives in May.
“We don’t want it,” Tokong told Arab News. “When we talked about the cultural center with the Israeli embassy, we specifically told them, ‘What’s the purpose?’ We already have an education system. We already have a church here.”
With new officials taking office following recent elections, she is now preparing with other community members to take the case forward with the local administration.
In April, Project Paradise, a Siargao-based non-governmental organization, held a town hall meeting with residents and local business owners to gather their complaints.
“We received reports primarily regarding disrespect for local customs and values — ranging from noise disturbances, reckless driving, disregard for modesty in dress in rural areas, to environmental irresponsibility such as leaving trash on beaches or protected areas,” Sofia Nicole de Asis, president of Project Paradise, told Arab News.
While De Asis said that the incidents “are not isolated to any one group, and our stance has always been that misconduct is a behavioral issue, not a nationality-based one,” members of the Facebook group Siargao Business Classified 2.0 have been reporting Israeli tourists calling local staff “slaves,” illegally raising their flags on boats, trashing local homestays, violating the island’s no-noise curfew past midnight, and verbally and physically assaulting locals.
“They have no right to put up a cultural center as they have no roots or connection to Filipinos’ history. ‘Free Palestine’ today, so we won’t be shouting ‘Free Siargao’ tomorrow,” one user wrote, as others complained over inaction from the island’s administration.
“These people were welcomed into our country and treated with genuine hospitality, yet they choose to disregard our laws and disrespect our people and communities. The local government of Siargao should strictly enforce all local rules and regulations,” another user said.
“For the local government in Siargao, you better act. Remember you’re still part of the Philippines, you might one day be surprised that Siargao is now ‘the promised land,’” another commented.
Officials in General Luna, one of the main towns on Siargao, did not respond to requests for comment from Arab News.
UK students could face jail over support for banned Palestine Action
- Ex-govt advisor urges universities to warn students of penalties for supporting illegal organizations
- Palestine Action proscribed as terrorist group after members broke into Royal Air Force base last month
LONDON: University students in the UK face jail if they support the group Palestine Action, the former government advisor on political violence and disruption has warned.
Lord Walney, who wrote a report in 2024 advising that the organization be proscribed, said vice-chancellors should let students know the penalties that could be incurred by promoting the group’s policies, displaying its symbols or voicing support for it.
Palestine Action was declared a terrorist organization earlier this month after activists filmed themselves breaking into a Royal Air Force base in England.
On Monday, 29 people were arrested for supporting it at a protest in Westminster, with some holding placards stating: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
Penalties for membership of, or eliciting support for, proscribed groups in the UK include a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.
Protests in support of the Palestinian cause and against Israel’s war in Gaza have been frequent features across numerous university campuses in the UK since the outbreak of hostilities in October 2023.
In a letter to Vivienne Stern, CEO of Universities UK — a body representing 142 higher education establishments — Walney claimed there was a “clear danger that individuals may be unwittingly lured into expressing support for an entity whose methods are not only criminal, but now formally recognised as terrorism,” and “Universities UK has an important role to play in protecting both freedom of expression and student welfare within the bounds of the law.”
He added: “Palestine Action’s deliberate strategy has long involved drawing students into criminal activity under the guise of legitimate protest, preying on the understandable sympathy for Palestinians felt by large numbers of young people to find recruits.
“With its formal proscription, the legal threshold has shifted: expressions of support, including wearing insignia, arranging meetings, or promoting the group’s activities — whether knowingly or through naivety — now risk serious sanction with students at risk of acquiring a criminal record for a terror offence.
“This risk clearly exists whatever any individual may think of the government’s decision to proscribe Palestine Action.
“My view is that the group’s systematic campaign of sabotage justifies proscription, given the fact that property damage is included in the legal definition of terrorism.”
UUK told The Times that it had “written to our member vice-chancellors to alert them to the fact that Palestine Action has been proscribed as a terrorist organisation under the Terrorism Act 2000, effective from Saturday July 5, and to their obligation to ensure that staff and students are aware of this.”
A British F35 fighter jet stranded in India may finally fly back home after inspiring memes
- Jet has been stranded at airport in southern Kerala state due to technical snag, is being repaired by UK engineers
- One of the memes shows cartoon in which plane is enjoying snacks with group f locals against a scenic background
NEW DELHI: A British F-35B fighter jet stranded at an Indian airport for nearly a month, sparking memes and cartoons on social media, is expected to fly back home as early as next week, Indian officials said.
The stealth fighter, one of the world’s most advanced and costing around $115 million, is stranded at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport in the southern state of Kerala due to a technical snag and is being repaired by UK engineers, officials said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they aren’t authorized to speak to the media.
The jet was on a regular sortie in the Arabian Sea last month when it ran into bad weather and couldn’t return to the Royal Navy’s flagship aircraft carrier, the HMS Prince of Wales, officials said.
The aircraft was then diverted to Thiruvananthapuram, where it landed safely on June 14. Officials said engineers hope to repair the plane in the next few days before it could fly back to UK sometime next week.
The stranded military aircraft, manufactured by Lockheed Martin, has triggered A.I.-generated memes in India. In a social media post, the tourism department of Kerala showed the aircraft on the tarmac surrounded by coconut trees and posting a fictitious five-star review.
“Kerala is such an amazing place, I don’t want to leave. Definitely recommend,” it said.
The state’s top official at the tourism department, K. Biju, said the post was put out in “good humor.”
“It was our way to appreciate and thank the Brits who are the biggest inbound visitors to Kerala for tourism,” said Biju.
Another cartoon posted on X showed the plane enjoying snacks with a group of locals against a scenic background.
The British High Commission confirmed to The Associated Press that a UK engineering team has been deployed to “assess and repair” the aircraft.
There has been speculation in India that if the engineers fail to rectify the aircraft, it could be partially dismantled and transported in a cargo plane. The UK’s Ministry of Defense dismissed the speculation in an emailed statement.
Report: Japan, UK, Italy open to Saudi joining fighter-jet program
- Tech sharing, and other issues need resolution, says report
- Riyadh ‘encouraged’ to boost its nascent aerospace industry
DUBAI: Japan, the UK and Italy are open to having Saudi Arabia join their next-generation fighter-jet initiative, but only once the project has reached a more advanced stage and key issues have been resolved, according to The Japan Times.
The Global Combat Air Program is a joint effort to develop a sixth-generation fighter.
It will likely remain a trilateral initiative until after the GCAP International Government Organization, or GIGO, and the industry-led joint venture Edgewing sign their first international contract, likely by the end of 2025, the newspaper reported recently.
The GIGO, officially inaugurated on Monday in Reading, England, was established last year to oversee government-level coordination for the program.
Edgewing, launched last month, brings together the UK’s BAE Systems, Italy’s Leonardo, and the Japan Aircraft Industrial Enhancement Co., and is responsible for designing and developing the aircraft.
“There is no preclusion in having Saudi Arabia join the program, but we first have to define certain criteria and clarify all the points,” one source told The Japan Times, speaking after a virtual meeting between the GCAP nations’ defense ministers on Monday.
Riyadh has been “encouraged” to build up its aerospace expertise — including potentially acquiring and assembling Eurofighter Typhoons — before entering the GCAP, the newspaper reported.
In addition to Saudi Arabia, several other countries are said to have expressed interest in joining the program. These include two unnamed European countries, as well as one Middle Eastern and one Asian nation, according to a source cited by The Japan Times.
The terms of participation and contributions of any future member states remain undefined. Any expansion of the program would require unanimous approval from Japan, the UK and Italy.
The GCAP aircraft will be Japan’s first major defense development with partners other than the US.
It is intended to replace the aging F-2 fighter jets used by Japan’s Air Self-Defense Force, as well as the Eurofighters operated by the UK and Italy. The new jets are scheduled to enter service by 2035.
With the conceptual design phase complete, the program is moving into detailed design and development, and a demonstrator flight is expected within two to three years.
Despite overall satisfaction with the program’s progress, some tensions remain, particularly around access to sensitive intellectual property and full technology sharing.
In April, Italy’s Defense Minister Guido Crosetto publicly criticized the UK for not fully disclosing technology to its partners, in an interview with Reuters.
It is a concern that The Japan Times understands is still unresolved.
