Armenians hold a religious ceremony at Akdamar church

A religious ceremony which was held at the Akdamar Church for the first time last year was followed by the second one yesterday. As part of the ceremony, approximately 2,000 Armenians reached the island where the church is located by boat, burned candles, prayed and chanted. The ceremony was directed by Episcope Sahap Mashaliyan. Reportedly, income to be earned from selling the candles which were burned will be sent to Somali. Nobody has officially attended the ceremony from Armenia, whereas Culture and Tourism Ministry’s Foreign Relations and EU Coordination Department Head Osman Sahin, Van Deputy Governor Atay Uslu, Gevash District Governor Yusuf Guni and Provincial Tourism Director Muzaffer Aktug participated from Turkey.