Lemkin Institute concerned about threats to Armenian Quarter in East Jerusalem

The Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention is greatly
concerned about the threats to the integrity of the Armenian Quarter in East
Jerusalem.

“We call on the United States and other close allies of
Israel to take it upon themselves to guarantee the Armenian community due
process in this land dispute. The global Armenian community has already lost
one important historical land this fall — Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh), which was
forcibly depopulated when Azerbaijan invaded, massacred Armenians, and terrorized
almost the entire Armenian population into fleeing. The Armenian people cannot
lose another.

The Armenian Quarter makes up about one-sixth of the city of
Jerusalem. It is 1,600 years old, dating back to the reign of Roman Emperor
Constantine. The first settlement of Armenians in Jerusalem predates
Constantine even, with Armenians having settled in Jerusalem as early as the
first century BCE when the Armenian Empire controlled nearby territories in
Syria. Although the Armenian population in Jerusalem today is very small, the
Armenian Quarter remains an important part of the Armenian Diaspora presence as
the oldest remaining living diaspora of Armenians,” reads the statement issued
by the Lemkin Institute.