Georgian monk orders to demolish Armenian graves in Norashen Church yardNovember 17, 2008 - 15:44 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - On November 16, Georgian monk Tariel Sikinchelashvili instructed workers to raze to the ground the graves of Mikhail and Lidia Tamamshev.This barbarian act outraged Armenians, who demanded to let the graves in their place. However, Father Tariel responded with harsh statements. Upon arrival of representatives of the Armenian Apostolic Church and parliament member Van Bayburt, the Georgian monk said he just wanted to replace the gravestones to "clean under them." Policemen have filed a formal report about the incident. A representative of Georgian Ombudsman also arrived at the site. Church of Norashen was founded in 1467 and renovated several times since then. During the Soviet era, the church was transformed into an archive. Eventually, in 1989, shortly before Georgia's independence, the Georgians intensified and multiplied their actions aimed at appropriating the church in order to transform it into a Georgian orthodox one. Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Cyprus parliament honors Armenian genocide victims Acting House President Zacharias Koulias noted that April 24 marks the “black anniversary” of the Armenian genocide. Armenia PM, France envoy discuss regional matters Issues related to the consistent development of Armenia-France cooperation were discussed. Azerbaijan razes historic Armenian church to ground Azerbaijan has demolished the historic Armenian Church of St. John the Baptist (known as Kanach Zham). Russia to begin assessing migrant workers' speaking skills Rosobrnadzor is planning to change the Russian language exam for migrant workers and include an assessment of speaking skills |