Israeli government must take effective measures to stop attacks on  Armenians in Jerusalem - ex-MP

ArmInfo. The Israeli government must take measures to prevent attacks on Armenians in Jerusalem and not exploit the issue of Armenian Genocide recognition whenever it is  convenient. Former Armenian Member of Parliament Tigran Abrahamyan  wrote about this on his Facebook page.

Specifically, he touched on the situation that occurred in the  Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem. "The attack by Jewish radicals on the  Monastery of St. James in the Armenian Quarter of Jerusalem is  unacceptable. It is particularly alarming that such incidents are  becoming systematic," the former member of parliament noted. In this  regard, he recalled how, days earlier, six Jews had gathered outside  the Armenian Patriarchate's St. James Monastery, spit on its gates,  then hurled insults at Armenians and threw stones, all while filming  the incident on a mobile phone. And although, as Abrahamyan noted,  the police reported the arrest of those involved in the attack, such  incidents are far from isolated.

"This suggests that they are either enjoying someone's protection, or  the authorities are not taking sufficient measures to prevent such  incidents. Instead of exploiting the issue of international  recognition of the Armenian Genocide as a matter of urgency, the  Israeli government should develop an appropriate approach to such  incidents and take effective measures to prevent them," the former MP  concluded.

As a reminder, on June 28, the Israeli government unanimously  recognized the mass killings of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire  during World War I as Genocide. The initiative was put forward by  Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. After this, the document was  supposed to be sent to the Knesset for approval. The Turkish Foreign  Ministry sharply criticized Israel's initiative, calling the Israeli  cabinet's actions politically motivated. Azerbaijan also condemned  Israel's intention to recognize the Armenian Genocide in the Ottoman  Empire. Specifically, the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry issued a  statement on June 29 calling on Israel to reconsider its position. On  July 13, it was announced that Israel had suspended a critical vote  in the Israeli parliament on recognizing the violence against  Armenians committed by the Ottoman Empire during World War I as  genocide.