Armenian migrants in Turkey wary of political tensions - Reuters
A century after her forebears fled massacres in Turkey for Armenia, Alla has gone the other way, hoping to win Turkish citizenship after leaving her impoverished homeland.
She works as a nanny in Turkey but fears deportation, one of thousands of undocumented workers from the former Soviet republic who feel hostage to a decades-old diplomatic dispute.
"We live in fear they (the Turkish authorities) can kick us out if something happens," said Alla, who declined having her full name published because of her illegal status in Turkey.
"When I get home from work, I thank God 1,000 times nothing happened," she said. "If I get citizenship, I won't be afraid."
Estimates put the number of Armenians here between 10,000 and 30,000. A bus ticket bringing them from Yerevan to Istanbul and, they hope, a better life costs the equivalent of about $50.
Their numbers are dwarfed by the 3 million Syrians and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis who have fled war but Armenian migrants feel vulnerable to the changing political winds.
Armenia, along with most Western scholars and two dozen nations, says the 1915 massacre was genocide. Turkey accepts that Armenians were killed during the upheaval of World War One but rejects declarations that it was genocide.
Animosity between the neighbors, whose border is shut, have flared this month after clashes between Muslim Azerbaijan and Armenian-backed Christian separatists in Nagorno-Karabakh, a region inside Azerbaijan that is controlled by ethnic Armenians.
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said the deaths of Azeris "seared our souls" and blamed Armenia for the outbreak of the worst clashes since a 1994 ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh after a war that killed thousands of people on each side.
Turks took to social media to denounce Armenians as "murderers" and proclaim Nagorno-Karabakh "Turkish territory".
"We hear rumors they will kick out Armenians because of the Azerbaijan matter," said Alla, 54. "This hate will never end."
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There is a solid evidence that Azerbaijan has launched a thoroughly planned attack on the NKR
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- 12:37 • 03.04.21 Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh in Despair After Trauma of Military Defeat - France 24
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- 12:41 • 23.10.20 President Armen Sarkissian Meets Emmanuel Macron at Élysée Palace
- 12:16 • 23.10.20 Artsakh Defense Army Neutralizes Azerbaijani Military Hardware
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- 14:11 • 09.10.20 Turkey openly backs Azerbaijan 'far more aggressively than in the past' - ABC News on Syrian mercenaries fighting in Karabakh
- 15:52 • 08.10.20 Iconic Armenian Church Hit in Azerbaijani Attacks in Nagorno-Karabakh City (photos)
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- 19:31 • 05.10.20 Call for Urgent Action: Armenian Journalist Brings Intn'l Colleagues' Attention to Situation iin Artsakh After Azerbaijani Attacks
- 16:17 • 04.10.20 Turkey's Support to Syrian Mercenaries Fighting Against Artsakh: Facts About Azerbaijani Aggression
- 12:39 • 04.10.20 Nagorno-Karabakh's Capital Under Azerbaijani Strikes
- 13:49 • 03.10.20 Armenian Armed Forces Neutralize Azerbaijani Defense Positions
- 10:12 • 29.09.20 ArmenianTroops Destroy Azerbaijani Armored Fighting Vehicle on Frontline
- 23:42 • 28.09.20 There is a solid evidence that Azerbaijan has launched a thoroughly planned attack on the NKR
- 18:45 • 28.09.20 EU calls for Immediate End to Hostilities over Nagorno-Karabakh
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