Members of French Senate visited the Armenian church in Damascus and met with Bishop Armash Nalbandian.

French Senate member, Head of the Senate’s French-Syrian Friendship Committee Jean-Pierre Vial and member of the Senate and Mayor of Laval city François Zocchetto visited the French Hospital of Damascus and the Armenian church.

Bishop Armash Nalbandian explained the situation in Syria in general and particularly in cities of Damascus and Aleppo in spite of the crisis taking place in the country, SANA reported.

He added that Turkey has played a big aggressive role in the crisis, opening its borders to the terrorist organizations where perpetrated massacres against the Syrian Armenians in the city of Kassab and other Syrian cities, just as their predecessors in the Ottoman Empire committed Armenian Genocide in 1915.

Bishop Nalbandian stressed that Armenians are deeply rooted in their homeland, Syria, and they are part and parcel of the Syrian people, as they wish that the solution to the crisis should be comprehensive- not restricted to particular cities.

“A lot of innocent people in Damascus have been killed in almost daily terrorist attacks with rocket and mortar shells,” Bishop Nalbandian said, adding that the Church was targeted twice last year leaving many children dead.

Vial stressed that the delegation’s visit to Syria is very important, clarifying that Syria has always been a place for all sects and it is exemplary for the co-existence and tolerance among its people.