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Thu, Nov 25, 2010 | Ha’aretz
A Lebanese Armenian man holds a crossed-out Turkish flag next to the Martyrs' Statue representing the 1916 hanging of several Lebanese activists resisting Ottoman rule during a protest in downtown Beirut against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Lebanon on November 25, 2010. At least 1.5 million Armenians were systematically massacred between 1915 and 1917 as the Ottoman Empire, the predecessor of modern Turkey, was falling apart. (Photo: JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
Lebanese Armenians Unhappy With Erdogan’s Visit To Lebanon
According to Ha’aretz news report, hundreds of Lebanese of Armenian descent gathered in the capital’s Martyrs’ Square and clashed with security forces during a protest Thursday over a visit to Beirut by the Turkish prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish Prime Minister was on a two day trip which started on Wednesday and was officially welcomed by Lebanese Prime Minister Sa’ad al-Hariri at the Rafiq Hariri airport in Beirut.
The Turkish premier held also closed-door talks with President Michel Sleiman and met parliamentary Speaker Nabih Berri. He also visited the north and south of the country and inaugurated a Trauma and Emergency hospital constructed by Turkey.
Lebanon has about 150,000 Armenians, or nearly 4 percent of its population, whom harbor deep animosity toward the Turks over the 1915 killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians.
Erdogan used his visit to warn Israel his country will not keep silent in case it attacks Lebanon or Gaza again.
“They invade Lebanon with the most modern warplanes and tanks, they kill children and destroy schools and hospitals, and they expect us to remain silent?” he asked.
“We will not keep silent and we will stand with all our capabilities with what is right,” he said.
Erdogan didn’t mention Hizballah’s rocket attacks on Northern parts of Israel and the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers which led to the Israel-Lebanon war of 2006 known in Lebanon as the July war.
During his visit, Erdogan is likely to sign a partnership agreement to establish a free-trade zone and a joint political declaration that envisages establishing a high-level strategic cooperation council.
“The aim of (Erdogan’s) visit was to sign bilateral agreements … and strengthen quadripartite ties among Turkey, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon,” Sleiman’s office said. “The meeting also covered … the importance of finding solutions to all matters related to the international [Hariri] tribunal.”
Photo Gallery
Lebanese Armenians clash with riot policemen during a protest in downtown Beirut against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Lebanon on November 25, 2010. (Photo: JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
Lebanese of Armenian descent carry an Armenian flag as they tear up a poster showing Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan during a protest against his visit, in Beirut's Martyrs' Square, Lebanon, Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Grace Kassab)
A Lebanese Armenian protester waves an Armenian flag bearing a sticker reading "No!" during a rally in downtown Beirut against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Lebanon. (JOSEPH EID/AFP/Getty Images)
A Lebanese woman of Armenian descent carries a shirt calling for the boycott of Turkish products during a protest against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Beirut's Martyrs' Square, Lebanon, Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Grace Kassab)
Hundreds of Lebanese of Armenian descent protest against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Beirut's Martyrs' Square, Lebanon, Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Grace Kassab)
A Lebanese army officer, left, arrests a Lebanese man of Armenian descent, while another security man throws back a rock, as Armenians protest against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, in Beirut's Martyrs' Square, Lebanon, Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010. (AP Photo/Grace Kassab)
Lebanese Armenians holds a slogans that reads in Arabic "Erdogan should bow before our martyrs" during a protest against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan outside Beirut International Airport on November 24, 2010. (ANWAR AMRO/AFP/Getty Images)
Lebanese riot police stand guard as Lebanese Armenians hold anti-Turkish slogans during a protest against the visit of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan outside Beirut International Airport on November 24, 2010. (ANWAR AMRO/AFP/Getty Images)
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[…] weekend, Lebanese Armenians protested over Turkish involvement in Lebanon. During a demonstration on Martyrs’ Square in Beirut slogans were chanted such as “the Lebanese have not […]