Day: December 21, 2023

The spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza, or HPAI, commonly called bird flu, to the remote southern region has raised concerns for isolated populations of species, including penguins and seals, that have never been exposed to the virus.

The H5 strain of the virus was detected in the region on October 8 in a brown skua on Bird Island, part of the British Overseas Territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, according to a report by OFFLU, which gathers experts from the World Organization of Animal Health and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization.

Around the same time, the virus was detected in fulmars and albatrosses in the nearby Falkland Islands.

“HPAI H5 virus is likely to spread further among Antarctic wildlife, potentially infecting the 48 species of birds and 26 species of marine mammals which inhabit this region,” OFFLU said in its report on Thursday.

“The negative impact of HPAI H5 on Antarctic wildlife could be immense, because their presence in dense colonies of up to thousands of pinnipeds [seals] and hundreds of thousands of birds facilitates virus transmission and may result in high mortality,” the report said.

Elephant seals in South Georgia could have been infected by migrating seals from South America, where there was a large die-off of the species, OFFLU said. Infected elephant seals could possibly transport the virus to neighboring islands and further south to the Antarctic Peninsula.

“If HPAI H5 virus completes the above-suggested stage of spread, further virus spread in the Antarctic region is likely given the many avian and mammalian species that probably are susceptible to infection,” the report said.

Bird flu in Antarctica particularly threatens the emperor penguin species, considered under near threat of extinction. If the virus was to enter an emperor penguin colony, it could spread to the whole population, OFFLU said.

It urged continued monitoring and surveillance of wildlife populations and biosafety measures to reduce the risk of human-mediated spread of the virus to new areas and to reduce the risk of human infection.

OFFLU uses the biogeographical definition of the Antarctic region, based on species and ecosystems distribution. It is wider than the Antarctic Treaty region, including all ice shelves.

The St. Mary’s Armenian Apostolic Church in the city of Södertälje in Sweden was looted, with valuable items having been stolen, the TelgeNytt news agency reported.

A police investigation is underway.

The exact time of the break-in is unknown, but it is supposed to have taken place on Wednesday night or early this morning, officials reported.

The number perpetrators was unclear. It is presumed that the assailants entered the church through a window that leads to an adjacent room that is used for baptisms, weddings and other events.

The stolen items are reported to be of great value and to have high sentimental value for the church.

“We didn’t expect this. We are facing an empty altar before Christmas,” Alexander Sharoyan, the church’s spokesperson, told TelgeNytt.

The police have launched an investigation into the burglary. The congregation and those affected are now waiting for more information while the investigation continues, in hopes of recovering the stolen items.

“I don’t know if this is a sign for something to come, but we will do everything to make our members feel safe,” added Sharoyan.

YEREVAN (Azatutyun.am)—In a move denounced by Moscow on Thursday, Armenian authorities have suspended the radio broadcast of Russia’s state-run Sputnik news agency in Armenia after it aired a program highly critical of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

The Sputnik Armenia news service’s weekly program broadcast on November 17 was authored and presented by Tigran Keosayan, a Russian film director and TV commentator of Armenian descent. It featured disparaging comments about Pashinyan and his government’s policies.

Keosayan and his wife Margarita Simonyan, who runs the Russian television network RT and several other Kremlin-funded media outlets, are vocal critics of the current Armenian government. Simonyan was banned from entering the South Caucasus country last year.

Armenia’s National Commission on Television and Radio (HRAH) on Wednesday accused Keosayan of making “mocking and derogatory” statements about Armenia and its people in breach of Armenian law. It said foreign nationals also have no “moral right” to do that.

The commission announced that it has therefore banned an Armenian radio station from retransmitting any Sputnik Armenia programs for the next 30 days.

The Russian Embassy in Yerevan criticized the decision the following day, saying that it limited Armenians’ right to “receive information from a source of their choice.”

“This step cannot but look like a concession to those who are increasingly in favor of breaking the traditional, mutually beneficial and mutually respectful allied relations between Russia and Armenia,” the embassy added in a statement.

For his part, Keosayan responded to the ban by attacking and insulting Pashinyan on his Telegram channel. The Armenian premier “once again proved the correctness of all my words addressed to him,” he wrote on Thursday.

The embassy statement noted that the HRAH’s decision came just three days after Russian and Armenian government officials met to discuss Yerevan’s discontent with Russian television’s recent coverage of Armenia. The two sides made differing statements on that meeting.

Russian Ambassador Sergei Kopyrkin was summoned to the Foreign Ministry in Yerevan in October after Russia’s leading state broadcaster, Channel One, derided and lambasted Pashinyan during an hour-long program aired. The program featured pro-Kremlin panelists who portrayed Pashinyan as a Western puppet tasked with ending Armenia’s close relationship with Russia.

The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned the Armenian charge d’affaires in Moscow the following day. Ministry officials condemned what they called anti-Russian propaganda spread by Armenia’s government-controlled media.

In the last few years, Armenian Public Television has regularly interviewed and invited politicians and commentators highly critical of Moscow to its political talk shows. Their appearances in prime-time programs of the TV channel run by Pashinyan’s loyalists have become even more frequent lately amid rising tensions between Moscow and Yerevan.

The HRAH on Wednesday also fined Sputnik Armenia 500,000 drams ($1,240) for the latest talk show by former opposition parliamentarian Arman Abovian during which he effectively accused Pashinyan’s government of planning to cede much of Armenia’s territory to Azerbaijan. The commission accused the broadcaster of spreading false and unverified information.

Vartan Fundukian

Vartan Fundukian was born on August 1,1930 to Nerses and Iskuhi Fundukian in the village of Novaya Burulcha in Crimea. He was the youngest of three children – preceded by his two loving sisters, Araxi and Anahid. As the only boy, Nerses’ father gifted him with his name. The Fundukians lived a simple life in the village until the political maelstrom that was forming around them changed their lives forever.

Stalin’s rule extended into their village when Nerses and his brother, Haig, were imprisoned and Haig executed. Nerses was released on condition that he leave the country. So, towards the end of WWII, the family fled and became forced laborers in different farms in the farming village of Neunkirchen (Nine Churches), Germany – allowing them to continue to function as a family. At the end of the war, they were established in a displaced persons camp in Funker Kaserne, where they formed the deep bonds of community that would be transplanted to Montebello, California.
Vartan lived his childhood and early teen years at the camp, an active member of the scouts and a stellar student – Nerses would not have it any other way. It was at this camp of Soviet refugees, living in post-Nazi Germany, that the values of sacrifice, organization, and activism were cemented in him.

Through the efforts of ANCHA and George Mardikian, the Fundukians found stability when they landed in Philadelphia, on the General Harry Taylor, in November, 1949. There, they received much support from the Tootkhsoushian and Dmbelegian families before moving to Detroit the following year.

Detroit began to feel like home. Vartan began studying at Wayne State University during the day and working at the Delta Faucet Company, where he was quickly promoted to night manager. However, as his newly married sisters decided to move to California to start their families, Vartan and his parents followed – determined always to keep the family together.

Vartan Fundukian with Armenian National Hero Missak Torlakian in Spring, 1966

They settled in Montebello and began building their lives and their community. Vartan completed his BS in Aeronautical Engineering and was hired by Rohr Aircraft in San Diego after which he settled in at North American Aviation (later Rockwell, then Boeing). His career spanned over 30 years there, earning various accolades throughout his tenure, with his expertise in orbital maneuvering and propulsion systems. He worked on every Apollo Mission, the Explorer Project, the Space Shuttle, and the International Space Station. In fact, you’ll find his name on the roster that was placed on the moon in the first successful lunar landing.

Vartan Fundukian at the ARF Regional Convention in 1967

He met Sona, a student from Alexandria, Egypt in 1960 at a picnic in Montebello. Their story blossomed as they wed in 1961 and the family grew with the birth of their three children: Katherine, Alice, and Aram.

Vartan’s professional responsibilities grew in proportion to his community involvement.

Vartan, with his DP compatriots, set to work building the infrastructure of a vibrant community. They began with the foundation for all future endeavors: a school. Mesrobian was established in 1965 and is the only one of our schools NOT to be named after a large benefactor.

This was the essence of that generation. For Vartan, it was always about the work and never about the credit.

Benefactors Vartan and Sona Fundukian (center) with members of the ARF Central Committees of Western U.S. and Artsakh, Oct. 2019

And, the work was always for the next generation. AYF Camp is the clearest example of his commitment to kids having a space to come together with youth from throughout the country to learn, nurture their patriotic Armenian spirit, and to enjoy. He served as co-director, with his best friend Boris Kirakossian, (often to the dismay of the many kids whom he caught raiding). When it was clear that a permanent home was essential, he became deeply involved in the purchase and original renovations of AYF Camp Big Pines. We see the fruit of that labor in the multi-generational relationships formed in this room, alone.

Vartan’s community work also included the founding of the Holy Cross Cathedral, the Montebello Armenian Center, and the Armenian Martyrs Monument. Whether he was forging relationships with politicians at City Hall, making lifelong friends in the process, or bringing his leadership to the ARF, Vartan looked for ways to solidify and expand the Armenian presence in and access to American governance. When the ARS Nairy Chapter’s submission of a proposed Day Care Center to the Planning Commission was almost thwarted by a fellow Armenian, Art Payan stepped in declaring “Vartan is my friend. I trust his judgment. I will be voting in favor of this proposal” thereby turning the tide in favor of the thriving center for children benefitting the Montebello community today.

Benefactors Vartan and Sona Fundukian at the opening of the Torlakian-Fundukian Youth Center in Artsakh, Oct. 2019

In thinking about ways to ensure continued financial support of these foundational endeavors, Vartan’s good friend, Abraham Arzerounian approached Vartan and Boris about the possibility of launching a Bingo enterprise. They started the first bingo operation at the Armenian Center – an operation which has expanded over time to other institutions and communities. In fact, this is why the hokejash will be at Quiet Cannon. For the “card-carrying pessimist” that he liked to call himself, Vartan was hopeful about the future of Armenians. This is also what inspired Vartan and Sona to establish the Torlakian-Fundukian Community Center in Kovsakan, Artsakh in 2019.

Vartan Fundukian

Still, what brought true joy to Vartan was his family. He would come home from work, change into his swim trunks, and dive into the pool daily. It’s like he washed off his professional persona and became “bob.” During the evening meal discussions ranged from politics to school and periodically devolved to a fit of the giggles – much to bob’s chagrin. To his nieces and nephews, he was “Keri,” or “Uncle Vartan,” or “Captain.” To his friends, he was Vartan, “Funduk,” “Monsoor” or “unger.” He had high expectations and anyone who had the privilege of knowing him tried hard to exceed them – especially his children.

In 1991, Alice married Viken Anmahouni, who quickly became an integral part of the family and a second son to Vartan. The family continued to grow with the birth of Varant in 1996 and Dvin in 1997. Vartan relished in their growth and beamed with pride in their milestones. In 2009 he gained a third son in Kathy’s husband, Rafik, who was tragically taken from us in 2015.

Vartan loved nothing more than spending time with his family. Whether it was weekends at the beach, lunch with his nephews, or Sunday night dinners, he enjoyed breaking bread and making every moment a happy hour. He took pride in how these were a strengthening of strong roots and a cementing of new multi-generational relationships. Vartan would have loved this past week.

On October 30, Vartan died peacefully surrounded by his family, holding Sona’s hand.