YEREVAN, APRIL 8, ARMENPRESS: The events ongoing in Syria and the fate of village-town Kessab remain on the focus of the international society. Armenpress reports citing the official website of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the People’s Republic of China that the official representative of the Foreign Affairs Ministry of the People’s Republic of China   Hong Lei stated at the course of the press conference in response to the question of a journalist over the events in Kessab that China does not accept any aggression against peaceful population.

The Chinese side calls for the consecutive time on the forces operating in Syria immediately to stop the violence and make efforts to provide security for the peaceful population, including representatives of national minorities. The Chinese side urges to launch the third round of Geneva negotiations in the short period of time and to make a political decision over the Syrian issue as to establish peace and stability in the near future,” Hong Lei said.

According to the Armenian Weekly, the armed incursion began on Friday, March 21, 2014 with rebels associated with Al-Qaeda’s al-Nusra Front, Sham al-Islam and Ansar al-Sham crossing the Turkish border and attacking the Armenian civilian population of Kesab. The attackers immediately seized two guard posts overlooking Kesab, including a strategic hill known as Observatory 45 and later took over the border crossing point with Turkey. Snipers targeted the civilian population and launched mortar attacks on the town and the surrounding villages. According to eyewitness accounts, the attackers crossed the Turkish border with Syria openly passing through Turkish military barracks. According to Turkish media reports, the attackers carried their injured back to Turkey for treatment in the town of Yayladagi.

More than 700 Armenian families, the majority of the population of Kesab, were evacuated by the local Armenian community leadership to safer areas in neighboring Basit and Latakia. Ten to fifteen families with relations too elderly to move were either unable to leave or chose to stay in their homes. On Saturday, March 22, Syrian troops launched a counteroffensive in an attempt to regain the border crossing point, eye-witnesses and state media reported. However, on Sunday, March 23, the extremist groups once again entered the town of Kesab, took the remaining Armenian families hostage, desecrated the town’s three Armenian churches, pillaging local residences and occupying the town and surrounding villages. Located in the northwestern corner of Syria, near the border with Turkey, Kesab had, until very recently evaded major battles in the Syrian conflict. The local Armenian population had increased in recently years with the city serving as safe-haven for those fleeing from the war-torn cities of Yacubiye, Rakka and Aleppo.