YEREVAN (RFE/RL)--The French insurance company Axa paid out $1 million (680,000 euros) Monday, as the first installment of a $17.5 million settlement to compensate life-policy holders killed in the Armenian genocide, lawyers said.

YEREVAN (Yerkir)--"From Memory to Memorializing," an international conference dedicated to the nation's historical memory and conservation of cultural heritage will be held in Yerevan between November 27 and 28. The event will be mark the 40th anniversary of the Memorial's construction.

The Assembly of Turkish American Associations recently featured on its website a reference to "the first nationwide public survey" conducted in Turkey on the Armenian Genocide and the congressional resolution on this issue. The poll was carried out earlier this year by "Terror Free Tomorrow" in collaboration with Istanbul-based "ARI Movement" and U.S.-based "ARI Foundation."

WASHINGTON--The credibility of former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Secretary of Defense William Cohen in leading a newly launched genocide prevention initiative was called into question, today, by reporters who cited their ongoing efforts to block Congressional reaffirmation of the Armenian Genocide (H.Res.106 / S.Res.106), reported the Armenian National Committee of America.

Turkey’s Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was in Washington to meet with President Bush to discuss mounting tensions between the Turks and Kurdish rebel factions in Northern Iraq.

The revival of Van was cut short by the nomadic invasions of Seljuk Turks, in the second part of the XIth century. From there onwards, Van was under the rule of the Turks -- remaining backward. The inhabitants of the city had to flee the persecution and the heavy taxation that was imposed by the Turks.

The Armenian Student Association and Armenian Graduate Student Association at UCLA will be joining members of the UCLA community in protesting a visit, to the campus, by US Representative Jane Harman (D-CA-36) this Saturday, November 10th. The Protest will begin at 5 pm. While She is visiting the campus to accept the Jacoby International Award, her recent actions in opposition to H.Res.106, the Armenian Genocide resolution, have provoked outrage from a broad cross section of community leaders and elected officials.

YEREVAN (Armenpress)--Turkey's Prime Minister Recap Tayyip Erdogan was in Washington Monday to meet with President Bush to discuss mounting tensions between the Turks and Kurdish rebel factions in Northern Iraq. Following his meeting, Erdogan gave a speech at the National Press Club

It continues to boggle the mind what the Democratic leadership in Congress will do whenever the Republicans raise the specter of labeling them “soft on terrorism.” They approve wiretapping without a court order. They allow for indefinite detention of suspects without charge. They authorize the invasion and occupation of a country on the far side of the world that was no threat to us and then provide unconditional funding for the bloody and unwinnable counter-insurgency war that inevitably followed.

We should not be surprised by instances of what many would consider to be inappropriate use of academic credentials and skills, since, after all, academics and professionals have contributed in direct ways to genocidal killing projects, including the Armenian genocide and the Holocaust.

“The crisis between Turkey and the United States has burst out after passage of the Armenian Genocide resolution by the U.S. congressional panel. This document jeopardizes relations with our ally and is counterproductive as regards the Turkish-Armenian reconciliation,” Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said.

The unveiling ceremony of memorial to the Armenian Genocide victims took place in Cardiff, Wales, on November 3.