How much longer must I witness this dreaded spectacle of self-pity?  Why must you persist in your follies and while ignoring the obvious insist on the agony of desolation and depravity?  Perhaps you no longer feel the excruciating pain of your self-inflicted wounds.  You have become insensible to the pain, to the misery of rejection, to the dolorous fate of your own credulity and narrow-mindedness.  How much longer must I witness this?  Will there be others yet, deceived by the lure of your past glories, to find temporary escape into your cold and sore arms?  What have you to offer me in these times of confusion and war?  My bleeding heart deserves more than the sound of your silent lamentations.

They have all deserted you.  Those in whom you had once built your hope for a brighter future have left you naked and cold.  Your children do not recognize your name.  They don't even recognize themselves.  I have often called out your name in the classrooms, the church halls, at the wedding alters, and in their living rooms.  Yet I see no heads turn.  Your spoken words and written deeds mean nothing to them, for they can neither read nor write.  Your past is only comprehensible when it is explained in a language other than yours.

Your ignorance has blinded you to the point that you can no longer see the change in the color of my eyes, my hair, and my love.  Blonde has replaced the dark of my hair and my brown eyes have given way to the indifference of "their" blue.  In their insignificant libraries they store hundreds of books about your past and yet not a single one is there to tell me of your present condition.  Your daughters' rights, your own rights among the nations of the world, and my freedom... do these ideas make any sense to you?  I think not!  Everyone is blind; no one is afraid any more.

In cities around the world I find more sports teams honoring your stars, eagles, and winged-bulls than teachers or students of your language and arts.  Thousands of your children are spending their precious lives cold and hungry, away from home and in the refugee camps and the battle fronts of the Middle East.  I wonder if your promises of unity and recognition would make it any easier on them.  They have lost all hope and you have turned your face away.

When was the last time you sang a Turoyo lullaby to me?  Or perhaps you too have turned to Black Cats and Spice Girls.  The national and global organizations, congresses, and alliances of which you were once so proud are now ashamed to conduct their meetings in your language.  Our scholars are constantly ridiculing one another's work and accomplishments.  No one pays any attention to my cries of injustice.  You have betrayed our heroes and heroines of the past.  Yet they remained faithful to your cause.  Answer me in all sincerity and in the name of your Maker- in the name of every man and woman who lost his or her life to glorify your forgotten name:  Will there be others in the years to come that would still believe in your promise of freedom, independence and pride?  Your sons are drugged and your daughters intoxicated.  Are these not the foundation of your future?

My body is weary and my mind confused.  I am tired of admonishing the so-called educated.  Some laugh at my persistence, some ignore my remarks, and others are telling me that I may not even be yours.  They have abandoned your faith and your God.  I am even more tired of blaming the English, the French, the Jews, and the Arabs, Persians and the Kurds for your own faults and shortcomings.  I have now succumbed to a dark corner of my fantasy world and silently shed tears for those yet unborn.  Wake up Assyria and face the reality!

Wilfred Alkhas
ZENDA

(ZNDA: France)  The following is a press release of the Assyrian Patriotic Party in northern Iraq:

On 22 July 1998, the Assyrian civilians of Sarsenk were victims of another barbarian attack from their
Kurdish neighbors of Kany-Jenarky village, originally from upper Araden Kurdish village.
[On this day] the Kurdish armed troops from Kany-Jenarky village entered Sarsenk and began to attack the Assyrian civilians in their homes-  many were hit, verbally abused, and then shots were fired which injured three of whom one was a 14-year-old boy.

These acts were first initiated when the Kurdish men tried to inveigle the young Assyrian girls.  As the brothers of these girls tried to protect their sisters and relatives, they were seriously beaten and hurt by the the barbarian Kurdish troops.  Such known personalities, as Qasha Shlimon Eesho and the Mokhtar (mayor) of Sarsenk, tried to appease the situation by acknowledging the official authorities, (the regional government), and all possible channels,  but nothing was done to protect the Assyrian girls and their families and to prevent these attacks .

The situation  has become critical and dangerous.  Qasha Shlimon decided to travel to Arbil to talk and inform Mr. Franso Hariri and Mr. Sarkis Aghajan, but before his return to Sarsenk, the armed Kurdish
troops attacked his village as mentioned above.  The security forces tried to prevent the attacks but failed
due to small number. Even the efforts of some well known Kurdish and Assyrian individuals from the
Assyrian village of Badresh were futile in saving the Assyrians of Sarsenk.   The bloody and barbarian
Kurdish troops even tried to attack Qasha Shlimon and Mr. Talya, the Mokhtar of Sarsenk forcing these two to take refuge in the building of the headquarters of the security forces (Asayesh ).

The Assyrian Patriotic Party
The External Headquarters
25 - July - 1998

(ZNAF: Amman) On Saturday, Arab Christians condemned the Greek Orthodox Church patriarchate of Jerusalem for allegedly transferring land to Israel and called for the Arabisation of its predominantly Greek spiritual leadership. "We reject what the patriarchate is doing with the Orthodox Church's land in Jerusalem ... and recognize the sale and lease of this land as void," said Rauf Abu Jaber, president of the Amman Orthodox Society, at a press conference. "The patriarchate is the custodian, not the owner of the land,  and has no right to sell it," he said, after chairing a meeting of representatives of the Orthodox Church from Jordan and the Palestinian territories.  Abu Jaber said around 70 square kilometres (28 square miles) of the patriarchate's land including land at the controversial site of Jebel Abu Ghneim, known has Har Homa to Jews, was secretly sold last year and proceeds from the sale taken abroad. Israel recently completed the confiscation of Jebel Abu Ghneim in annexed Arab east Jerusalem where 6,500 Jewish houses are due to be built. The decision to build on the land has been at the root of the
current impasse in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process since March 1997.

Abu Jaber called for the Arabisation of the predominantly Greek spiritual leadership of the Orthodox Church's Jerusalem patriarchate, arguing that patriarchates in other regions of the world are presided over by nationals of those regions.  He also called on the Jordanian government and the Palestinian Authority to "take all legal measures to prevent and cancel the sale and lease of lost land." The Greek Orthodox Church's patriarchate of Jerusalem later released a statement denying it had ever sold "any inch of privately owned land for which it was directly responsible" or ever leased any land at Jebel Abu Ghneim.
The statement carried by Jordan's official news agency Petra said the patriarchate is innocent of any such allegations which it slammed as "distortions of the truth" and "fabricated lies."

COPTIC POPE PAYS LAST RESPECT TO A MOSLEM SHEIKH

(ZNDA:  Cairo)  Nearly a million people packed the streets of Daqdous on 17 June, grieving
for the man they considered something of a saint.  Many people lining the funeral procession in Sheikh Mohamed Metwali Shaarawi's home village, in the Nile Delta province of Daqahliya, tried to get close enough to touch his coffin, believing that his blessings would somehow be imparted to them.

The following day, thousands of people jammed Hussein Square in Fatimid Cairo where Al-Azhar Mosque had erected a huge marquee to receive callers wishing to offer condolences.  Mourners included Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Mohamed Sayed Tantawi, Prime Minister Kamal El-Ganzouri, Pope
Shenoudah III of the Coptic Orthodox Church, and nearly all cabinet ministers and opposition leaders.  And, there were the masses of devout followers who venerated the sheikh like no other.

Excerpt from June 25th issue of al-Ahram Weekly in Cairo, Egypt

 "You offered a link to APNP in this week's issue.  Please visit the site and see for yourselves.  You will be convinced that APNP is not an Assyrian Progressive Nationalist but an Islamic Party. Not every one who says Assyria Assyria is Assyrian. Please visit the site and see. We have to be vigilant about many infilterators and agents of the decadent islamic regimes in the Middle East.  Their aim is to make rifts between our people and divert them from the main goal of an pure and genuine Assyrian Nation. Please be careful.  Blessed be the name of Jesus."

Dr. George Habash
United Kingdom

Although the majority of Assyrians are Christian, there remain hundreds of thousands of Jews in Israel, Yezidis in Iraq, Moslems in Pakistan, and many other smaller groups around the world who trace their ancestry to the ancient inhabitants of Mesopotamia.  As our reader points out, the modern view of Assyrian nationalism, a struggle between the religious tradition dominated by the Christian assimilationist and the modern secular rationalists, is an interesting topic requiring closer examination.

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"Shlomo,  I am very happy to see the articles in this week's edition.  Well done.  I do like to see extracts from the history... especially when our fathers and forefathers suffered greatly, so as the new generation would learn and try to fight the difficulties.

In 1995 I had the chance to visit Mor Taqla Monastery in Ma'loula... yes I can see what you are aiming at... but what do you think the solution will be !!??

We pray to The Almighty God to have mercy on us all Christians around the world.  We continue to be scattered, away from our origin homeland... Yet, we need to continue to stress on the facts that our history contains very brilliant and great martyrs for the sake of Christianity. Keep up the good work."

Theodora Issa
Australia

In the introduction to Rev. Joel Werda's book, The Flickering Light of Asia, Thomas Burgess writes:  "For many centuries a mighty Christian church loomed large on the pages of ecclesiastical history.  This Church was the Church of the "dwellers in Mesopotamia" of the famous University of Edessa, and of the missionaries to the farthest corners of India and China...The fate of this precious remnant is in the hands of the nations of the West.  It would seem that common justice demanded their restoration.  All that is needed is to give them an opportunity to make a new start, security and freedom to live their own life in their own lands, and help to rebuild homes, churches, schools.  Also they need a few Western leaders of the right sort to guide them on their way, but it should be their own way.  To allow this nation to be wiped off the page of history ought to be unthinkable."

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"Last night, Thursday 7/30/98, my wife and I sat down to watch Assyrian television shows that start at 6:00 pm with the KBSV show of Bet Nahrain organization. We enjoy  the show because it keeps us updated on current issues related to the Assyrian community. The show played a video tape received from France dated April/1998 for a demonstration that took place in Paris by Assyrians against the Turkish massacre in 1915 of thousands of Assyrians. At 8:00 pm Mr. Dinkha Kasha's Assyrian show started, showing a concert by a Turkish singer. My question is, 'What is the logic behind this formula?' One show plays what the Turks did to us and, another shows how much we appreciate the Turkish culture and music. Not to mention Friday night's regular TV show of ATSF produced by Mr. Givargis of San Francisco. He is obsessed by the Turkish language, his show plays every Turkish song available on video tapes. My wife asked, 'What kind of umtanyoota is this?' Precious air time is available for us and we abuse it by showing foreign language songs & plays. Does any Turkish, Persian, Arabic or any other middle eastern TV or Radio program ever play an Assyrian song?

Can't the producers of those programs get together and utilize each other's material and show it to the public?  I am not against listening to foreign music, nor against foreign cultures. I have friends from different middle eastern countries. My point is: we don't have to use our media to promote foreign cultures. We are adults and know where to get tapes of foreign singers and play them in our own privacy.

Martin Mirza
Wheeling, Illinois

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"I Want to know the person to whom we were incorrectly and maliciously labeled by the envious pope in the 6th century.  See http://aramaic.org/nestor.html."

Robert Oshana
Chicago

Monsieur Jean Paul Bret
Groupe d'Amitié France-Armenie
á l'Assemblée Nationale Française

126, rue de l'Université
75007 PARIS

Re: Recognition of the Armenian genocide - by the French National Assembly - by the French
Government as represented by its competent officials and - especially by the French Prime Minister Mr
Lionel Jospin

DECLARATION
by the
Assyrian Democratic Organisation

Dear Mr Bret,

The Assyrian nation has learnt with great disappointment and worries about the evasive and truth
distorting statements of French Prime Minister Mr Lionel Jospin on last April 24 in which he avoided
despite overwhelming evidence to name the genocide - inflicted upon the Armenian nation in 1915-1918
and ongoing till 1923 - straightforwardly 'genocide' in the full and proper sense of the term but instead
played it down to a 'drama' and 'tragedy' of a sort.

Furthermore it has come to our knowledge that on next May 29 the French National Assembly will see a
motion being put to the vote which will demand the recognition of the Armenian genocide as such by
using the correct word for its essence and character.

IN THE ALL TOO WELL FOUNDED FEAR
that a possible non-adoption of this motion in any form and on any grounds whatsoever will establish a
precedent

· lending legitimation to further denials and repudiations of this very genocide as well as of other ones in
present and future
· invoking a flood of further intellectual and moral dishonesty and insincerity in matters of all-human
concern and fostering any future distortion of historical truth at the same time
· being bound to encourage potential perpetrators of genocide(s) in present and future by the mere fact of
its (their) non-recognition, thus non-condemnation, thus non-punishment

THE ASSYRIAN DEMOCRATIC ORGANISATION HEREBY EXPRESSES ITS WILL
to stand firmly by the Armenian nation and launches an urgent appeal to the French National Assembly,
the French Government and especially to the French Prime Minister Mr Lionel Jospin

-  to courageously wake up to the truth and to responsibly live up to its obligations
-  to do this by calling the aforesaid genocide by its proper name 'genocide'
-  thus to live up to the moral standards as being the achievements of the great
   French culture as part the European heritage to mankind
-  thus to make a central contribution to justice and genocide prevention
-  thus to open up really true chances for a reconciliation between the
   people and nations concerned by substantializing those prospects with a sincere
   commitment to truth which by principle is not liable to slide into the subjugation
   to any pressure impairing the sense for justice and consequently violating reality
-  thus to contribute to stability and a future positive development of the region.

OUR ATTITUDE in this is guided by a twofold motive:

1. By our firm belief that this very genocide constitutes an assault on mankind and humanity in total.
Consequently ethics and morale demand at least its recognition through correct designation, proper
judgment and its condemnation by every human being who does want not to step outside the value
system of humanity either willingly or by gross negligence,

2. By the fact deep-rooted in our hearts that the Assyrian nation herself is a VICTIM and thus
WITNESS of the aforesaid genocide insofar as it has expanded from the Armenian to the Assyrian nation
which latter it continues to actively and systematically threaten with elimination even today. That this
truth is not reflected in the awareness and conscience of the international community does not mean any
lessening but all the more demands its straight revelation, disclosure and world wide recognition.

‘The difference between the Armenian massacres and the Assyrian massacres lies in that in the first case
all the possible has been done to make it known in the world while in the second case all possible
precautions have been taken to keep this sad reality secret.’ (Rev. Dr. A. W. Wigrams in ‘Assyrians
during the Great War’, Near East, London 1920)

The Armenian genocide 1915-16 bearing its special character and importance was perpetrated within the
broader historical context of genocides inflicted also upon Syriacs-Assyrians and generally the oriental
Christians of which it marked the beginning.

What happened on April 24, 1915 turned into an ever growing tidal wave engulfing also the
Syriac-Assyrian communities in their respective homelands that resulted in killing half a million
Syriacs-Assyrians and uprooting another half million. This ethnic cleansing continues even today at the
hands of TURKS, KURDS, and ARABS.

WITH THIS IN MIND
we feel obliged to honour the memory of the victims of murder and other crimes against humanity (still
today: abduction, rape, forced Islamisation, Turkisation, Kurdisation, Arabisation, and expulsion) both of
our and the Armenian nation and to do this by hereby bearing open testimony to the common destiny of
distress and resulting human duties our both nations share in.

We want to reinforce our appeal with the heartily felt wish that this time efforts will succeed in making
the truth win and we hereby assure the Armenian nation of all and any support in this matter.

ISSA HANNA
President
ADO - Section Europe

Mr. Sait Demir
President
Zentralverband der Assyr. Vereinigungen in Mitteleuropa (ZAVD)
Postfach 112305
D-86048 Augsburg / Germany

Mr. Ninib Ablahad Lahdo
President
Assyriska Riksforbundet Isverige
P.P. 6019
S-15106 Södertalja / Sweden

Mr. Samir Elijo
President
Federatie Tur-Abdin (FTN)
Postbus 4013
NL-77504 RC EnschedeNetherlands

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ASSYRIOLOGY JOB OPENING

The State Archives of Assyria Project announces the opening of the following research position, to be filled on September 1, 1998:

SENIOR/JUNIOR RESEARCH ASSOCIATE TO EDIT NEO-BABYLONIAN LETTERS FROM THE
CENTRAL ARCHIVES OF NINEVEH.

The position involves a minimum two hours per week teaching obligation (in English). Minimum appointment for one year, maximum until the end of 2001 with a possibility of renewal. Salary commensurate with experience and qualifications. The successful candidate is expected to have a PhD in
Assyriology and demonstrated competence in Neo-Babylonian language, history and/or culture. Computer skills and general productivity count as significant additional assets.

Applications with cv, list of publications and the names and fax numbers or e-mail addresses of two referees should be sent by July 1, 1998 to

     Simo Parpola
     Director, State Archives of Assyria Project
     Institute for Asian and African Studies
     PL 59 (Unioninkatu 38 B)
     FIN-00014 University of Helsinki
     Finland

For further information contact Robert.Whiting@helsinki.fi. Feel free to circulate this announcement to potentially interested colleagues.

We are looking particularly for someone with expertise in Neo-Babylonian letters to translate and edit the NB Sargonic correspondence for publication in the SAA series (utilizing the normal SAA format), and our final selection will be based on how well suited the individual is to this particular task. Other
responsibilitiess will include teaching, proofreading of SAA publications, and participating in other projects of the Project as needed. A high level of written and spoken English is expected, and the entire project is computer-, but not word-processor-, oriented (MS-DOS).  Fax: +358-9-191 22094

BC (2004)

The Third Dynasty of Ur (UR III) falls and the dominant dynasties in southern Bet-Nahrain become Isin, Larsa, and Babylon, in that order.  One hundred years later, with the ascendancy of Larsa, Sumerian language once again became the prevalent language of the region- until the rise of Babylon in 1760's B.C.

Reading the Past: Cuneiform, Walker

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AD (1261)

Thousands of Assyrians flee the Nineveh plains villages of Bartillah, Bakhdida (Qaraqosh), Badna, Basihra, Karmlis towards Arbil to escape the overwhelming numbers of Kurds who were ordered by King Salih Isma'il to emigrate from the mountains of Turkey to the Nineveh plains. The villages were looted and thousands who did not reach Arbil were butchered by the newcomers.  The nuns' monastery in Bakhdida (Qarqosh) was invaded and its inhabitants brutally massacred.

Summery of the History of the lands, (Arabic edition) Bar Hebraius

The 7th of August has been designated as a Memorial Day for Assyrian Martyrs. Although this
observance is of a comparatively recent date, it has gained widespread acceptance among the Assyrian
people. And this is justly so. Every nation needs to have a day set aside for the remembrance of those
who gave their lives for the preservation of their cultural and ethnic identity. This is especially important
for the Assyrian Nation; for no other people have given so many martyrs in the defense of their national and ethnic rights.

Throughout our long history, each time an Assyrian man, woman, or child stood up against their
oppressors and refused to give up their religion, language, or national existence, our nation as a whole
was pulled one step back from the abyss of extinction! Yes! This is true, even if the immediate
consequences of such actions were destruction and death. Our martyrs form the core of our history.
They are the one who bravely and selflessly defended our existence, even to the point of giving up their
own lives, so that we could continuously have before us examples of self-sacrifice which would serve to
encourage us to preserve ourselves and our culture for future generations.

The legacy of our martyrs is a sacred obligation for each and every one of us, their children, to defend
and protect our cultural national existence, even as they have done. But now we are faced with a difficult
question: have we Assyrians at the present time lived up to this obligation? We do not raise this question
here to give an authoritative yes or no answer. It is clear that some Assyrians do indeed live up to this
obligation, while others do not. It is also true that some Assyrians fulfill this obligation more thoroughly
than others. Our purpose here is to point out some problems and issues the solutions and understandings
of which will help all Assyrians in fulfilling their obligation.

Martyrs Day was originally meant to commemorate the massacres of Assyrians in Iraq in 1933.
Gradually, we Assyrians have realized that there have been many instances in our history of massacres
and persecutions which equaled or surpassed Semel in importance. Consequently, there is a greater
emphasis in current observations on commemorating all the martyrs of our history. The development of
the 7th of August into a Memorial Day for all Assyrian martyrs is important and beneficial. Such a
development will lead to greater unity within our nation. Each of our churches, villages, and tribes have
memorials for their own particular saints and martyrs. We must develop the 7th of August into a
Memorial Day for all of these martyrs, so that we can bring the children of this nation together as a single
entity to commemorate these people and events.

To this end, we have brought together in this booklet as many accounts of the persecutions and
martyrdom of our people as we could find. We are very aware of the fact that these accounts are but a
pale shadow of the reality of our history. Unfortunately, our sources are limited and we make no claim to
have treated these subjects in an original and exhaustive manner. Our aim is to bring together in one small
booklet a variety of accounts so that those who have never known of them will now be informed, and
others who are aware of them may be encouraged to search out and discover more information about our
martyrs for the benefit of the present and future generations.

When we think of martyrs and retell their stories, it is often customary to mourn them and the events of
their lives. We are saddened and overcome with grief, bitterness, and despair at their sufferings. This
type of commemoration is one of passive mourning. While it fulfills an important human need, it also
brings with it the danger of adopting a passive and indifferent attitude. But our martyrs were rarely
passive or indifferent! It is necessary for us to turn away from a passive commemoration of our dead to
an active celebration of their triumphs. In the light of their sacrifices, we must make a firm commitment
to understanding, developing, and preserving the cultural and national values for which our martyrs gave
their lives. This is the only fitting way to commemorate our martyrs. Instead of weeping over the loss of
their lives, we must become determined to preserve the very things for which they gave up their lives.

Finally, it may be thought by some that the greatest threat to the preservation of our nation and culture is
the loss of our lives and our property. The lesson of our martyrs is that this is simply not true. The
swords and guns of our oppressors cannot kill our culture or our love of our nation. Rather, persecutions
tend to strengthen our attachment to these. Killing, raping, and plundering can weaken these things, but
they can never completely destroy them. There is only one thing which can destroy our cultural and
national existence, and that is the indifference of our own people. Nothing an outsider can do will ever
permanently harm us, but the attitude of indifference and neglect on the part of many of our own people
to our culture and national life will surely be the cause of its extinction.

On this Assyrian Martyrs Day, and on every one to come, let us dedicate ourselves to the struggle of
preserving our culture, our language, and our nationhood in unity and harmony with our fellow
Assyrians. Let us be worthy of the example of our martyrs. Let us honor their memory in this most
suitable way by preserving the very ideas and values for which they died.

Glory and honor to our Assyrian martyrs and their beloved nation now and for all time.

The Ashurbanipal Library Committee
Chicago-1989

August 7-11, 1933:  The Semel Massacre- With the prior knowledge of the government officials in Baghdad, thousands of Assyrian villagers are killed in northern Iraq and on the Syrian-Iraqi border by the Arab and Kurdish troops.

In silence we bow our heads to every Assyrian child, woman, and man whose death in the hands of the enemies of freedom and justice was a testimony to the very hope of our salvation.  Into what places have their impaled and naked bodies gone?  They bravely conquered and our eyes were not there to see.

ZENDA

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ZENDA Magazine is published every Monday. Views expressed in ZENDA do not necessarily represent those of the ZENDA editors, or any of our associated staff.  This publication reserves the right, at its sole discretion, not to publish comments or articles previously printed in or submitted to other journals. ZENDA   reserves the right to publish and republish your submission in any form or medium. All letters and messages require the name(s) of sender and/or author. All messages published in the SURFS UP! section must be in 500 words or less and bear the name of the author(s). Distribution of material featured in ZENDA is not restricted, but permission from ZENDA is required.  This service is meant for the exchange of information, analyses and news. To subscribe, send e-mail to: zenda@ix.netcom.com.

The Directory of ZENDA News Sources
ZNAA (Assyrian Academic Society-Chicago)
ZNAD (Assyrian Democratic Organization)
ZNAF (Agence France-Presse)
ZNAH (Al-Ahram Newspaper, London)
ZNAL (Al-Hayat, London)
ZNAI  (Assyrian International News Agency)
ZNAK (American Kurdish
ZNAM (Archeology Magazine)
ZNAP (Associated Press International)
ZNBN (Bet-Nahrain Inc/ KBSV-TV "AssyriaVision")
ZNCN (ClariNews)
ZNIF (Iraq Foundation)
ZNDA (Zenda: zenda@ix.netcom.com)
ZNIN (Iraqi National Congress)
ZNLT (Los Angeles Times)
ZNMN (San Jose Mercury News)
ZNMW (Mideast Newswire)
ZNNQ (Nabu Quarterly)
ZNNV (Nineveh Magazine)
ZNNY:  New York Times
ZNQA (Qala Atouraya- Moscow)
ZNRU (Reuters)
ZNSH (Shotapouta Newsletter)
ZNSJ (San Jose Mercury News)
ZNSM (Shufimafi Lebanese News)
ZNSO (Syrian Orthodox News "SOCNews")
ZNTM (Time Magazine)
ZNUP (United Press International)
ZNUS (US News & World Report)