Historical Armenian church opens for service

The historical Armenian Surp Giragos Church in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir will open its doors to hold two services at the weekend for the first time after 30 years, following the completion of restorations. The musical gala dinner and a concert which were scheduled as part of the inauguration ceremony were canceled by Armenian Deputy Patriarch Aram Ateshyan due to terrorist PKK attacks which occurred in the Cukurca district of the southeastern province of Hakkari on Wednesday. Ergun Ayik, chairman of the Armenian Surp Giragos Church Foundation, said that they were deeply saddened by those attacks and thus canceled the musical programs to be organized as part of the inauguration of church in order to show respect to 24 young Turkish soldiers who have lost their lives in Hakkari. He added that they expected nearly 1,000 Armenians from four corners of the earth to attend the weekend's service.