First funeral after 70 years in St. Giragos Armenian Cathedral in Diyarbakir
A newly renovated Armenian Church in Turkey’s southeast region witnessed a rare funeral on Monday the Archbishop Aram Atesyan arranged a ceremony for his departed older sister, Susli Bakir.
The six hundred year old Surp Giragos Armenian Church in Diyarbakir suffered heavy damage during the clashes between the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) militants and police in 2015 but after years of work, it opened its doors again in May.
Diyarbakır'daki Surp Giragos Ermeni Kilisesi'nde 60 yıl sonra ilk cenaze töreni düzenlendi. Kilisenin Başpiskoposu Aram Ateşyan'ın ablası Süslü Bakır için yapılan törene Ermeni cemaatinin yanı sıra bir çok kişi katıldı. pic.twitter.com/p2k7owUjjU
— Artı TV (@ArtiTV_) August 9, 2022
After the ceremony, Atesyan said that the church will continue to host baptisms, weddings and funerals for the Armenians living in the region.
“We are all children of this land. …The muslims, people from other faith were all here today. They showed us their love and respect,” he said.
The church, considered the largest of the Armenian community in the region, was built in the sixteenth century.
After the Armenian genocide in 1915, the church was used as a military warehouse, and a fabric depot but eventually it was returned to the Armenian community.
