Z E N D A  M A G A Z I N E
[renamed Zinda Magazine in 1999]
Volume I                       Issue 18                      November 18, 1995


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A Weekly Online Newsletter Serving the Assyrian Communities Around the World



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                     THE   L   I   G   H   T   H   O   U   S   E
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             THE HIGHEST IDEAL IN LIFE

To attain cultural development and progress among the
Assyrians, both as individuals and as a people, it is
necessary to have the highest ideal in life and to seek
to realize it.  And to reach this goal, families also
must bring forth children with a Christian and national
character who will serve the nation,and schools must
produce leaders.  The church and the clergy should revive
the pulpit, and with the fiery language and divinely
inspired message extol the life of the soul.  And the
wheels of the press should grind out newspapers and books
to promote the intellectual, spiritual, and national life
of the Assyrians.   Let family, church, school, and press
unite in this spirit, cooperate, and render mutual
assistance,for it is only then that this nation, which
has embarked in the journey of self-enlightenment, will
attain the supreme ideal in life, which it must of
necessity pursue.

                             Professor Ashur S. Yousuf
                             (1858-1915)

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               G O O D   M O R N I N G   B E T - N A H R A I N
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        EARTHQUAKE ROCKS NORTHERN BET-NAHRAIN

RU (Baghdad) Last Wendesday, an earthquake which shook a
large portion of the Middle East also hit Nineveh and
Mosul 250 miles north of Baghdad at 07:17 a.m. The tremor
measured 5.5 on the Richter scale caused no damage. The
earchquake was also felt in Baghdad.  The same quake caused
12 deaths and at least 69 injuries when it hit parts of
Israel, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the Gaza Strip and West Bank,
waking people with a jolt and causing buildings to sway.
Libya claims that Wednesday's shaking was the result of
Israeli nuclear tests in the Gulf of Aqaba.

    STRONG BLAST DESTROYS SADDAM'S SPY CENTER

RU (Nicosia)- The Iraqi Broadcasting Corporation (IBC)
said local headquarters of the Baathist regime in
northern Bet-Nahrain was blown up on Nov. 16, killing
12 security guards and wounding more than 20. The IBC
reported that the two-story building ``was used to
direct spying and espionage activities in the liberated
area of northern Iraq.'' The IBC, based in the
town of Salahuddin, is affiliated to the London-based
opposition Iraqi National Congress.

  ROBERT DEUTSCH FAILS TO SETTLE KURDISH DISPUTE

RU (ANKARA) U.S.-sponsored peace talks to resolve a
feud between rival Iraqi Kurdish factions in northern
Bet-Nahrain have ended without a settlement.  Robert
Deutsch left northern Bet-Nahrain last Monday after a
week of shuttle diplomacy between the two Kurdish
political groups.  The two parties have been locked
in a sometimes violent dispute for 18 months and have
divided northern Bet-Nahrain into separate spheres of
influence. Two earlier rounds of talks in Ireland in
August and September yielded few results. Deutsch, the
head of the Northern Gulf Affairs Office, met several
times with the KDP in the town of Salahuddin and the
PUK in the nearby city of Erbil but the two sides
themselves never met. Iraq criticized Deutsch's
mediation as ``a flagrant and impudent intervention
in Iraq's internal affairs.''  Meanwhile, Turkey
is disturbed over talks between German Christian
Democrat Party member, Heinrich Lummer, and the leader
of the terrorist PKK organization Abdullah Ocalan in
Damascus during the last few days in November.

      KURDISH LEADER CALLED A DRUG SMUGGLER

TN (Ankara) Eight international drug-smugglers, reported
as members of the Labor Party of Kurdistan (PKK), were
caught with over twenty pounds of heroin by the police
directorate's anti-smuggling department in Van, Turkey.
Police said that the street value of the heroin was 20
billion Turkish Lire and the suspects were trying to
smuggle the heroin from Iran to Greece.  The leader of
the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), Masoud Barzani
said at a press conference in northern Bet-Nahrain that
the PKK acted as a "mafia" in drug smuggling and described
the leader of the PKK, Abdullah Ocalan as a drug smuggler
and secret agent who served the interests of secret
services of some countries. Leader of the Patriotic Union
of Kurdistan (PUK) Jalal Talabani has been told by the
Turkish government that he must make his intentions clear
in connection with his ties with the PKK.
 

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                  S U R F S  U P !
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"I recently made (and am in the process of finishing)
a web page that will allow Assyrians who don't speak
the language well to learn through the art of music.
Please publish my URL:
http://users.aol.com/assyrianme/songs/assyrian.html
Oyet baseema rroba. Allaha minokhoon."

                        -Robert Oshana
                         Chicago

"From Assyrians in Greater Victoria/Vancouver, B.C.,
Canada--Greetings our brothers in Zenda and Zenda's
readers: Zenda's contributions to our Assyrian cause
and advancement in Cultural and political areas are
remarkeable. Keep up the good work and may god bless
you all for this excellent job."
 

                        Dr. Simon Francis Shamoun
                        Research Scientist
                          Canadian Forest Service
                        Associate Professor
                          Univ. of Victoria
                          Simon Fraser Univ.
 

"Next week Tuesday, Nov 28 at 7:00 P.M.Ben Elias
will be sworn in for his second term at the Union
City, City Hall.  I do not have the address at this
time.  As I was talking with Ben last week, he
indicated that he'd be honnored if there were a
group of Assyrians at the Swearing-In Ceremony,
next Tuesday...One of the individuals running against
Ben had made a comment about Ben's birthplace,
where he provided a table of the 3 candidates
indicating certain facts (or suggested facts).
In this table, an item entitled Birth Place appeared,
which should have no siginficance in a political
race. Anyway, for Ben Elias he had "Assyrian(Iraq)"
as the birthplace.  Needless to say this did not
play good with the voters as many voiced their
dislike and disgust with this issue.  Ben will be
making a statment in reference to his Assyrian origin
during his swearing in ceremony, therefore it would
be nice to have Assyrians other that his immediate
family and a couple of friends around."
 

                         -Esha Tamras, California
 

"I would like to take this opportunity to thank the
staff at Zenda for the fine job of putting together
such a fine and pleasurable magazine.  I find your
magazine very infomative and at the same time
educational.  Keep up the good work."
 

                         -Mazin Enwiya, Illinois

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               N E W S    D I G E S T
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      ASSYRIAN REFUGEES IN THE BALTIC STATES

RU (Vilnius) Lithuanian police Thursday detained 49
migrants from the Middle East.   Baltic states of
Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania have been used as
transit countries by people, including Assryians from
Iraq, seeking to reach Scandinavia.  Lithuania is the
only one of the Baltic states that has passed a so-called
refugee law, which guarantees certain rights for people
who arrive on its territory.  A lucrative business has
grown for smugglers, bringing people from Iraq.
Lithuania says it detained 2,000 such migrants last year
and the same amount so far this year.  There may be as
many as 40 Assyrian families remaining in Lithuania,
according to the Assyrian sources in Europe.
 

  IRAQ IN NEED OF MEDICAL DRUGS WORTH $200 MILLION
 

RU (Baghdad) - The official al-Iraq daily newspaper
said the number of patients afflicted with heart
disease, diabetes and cancer was rising, with more
than 600,000 of them receiving treatment every month
at government clinics and hospitals. With its oil
sales blocked by U.N. trade sanctions and overseas
assets worth billions of dollars out of reach, Iraq
is hard pressed to finance its medical purchases. The
U.N. offered Iraq a one-time sale of oil to pay for
urgent humanitarian needs. But Baghdad turned down
the offer, complaining the terms violated its
sovereignty.
 

  ASSYRIAN ACADEMIC SOCIETY ELECTION RESULTS
 

The following is the result of the election of
the Assyrian Academic Society Board of Directors
held last Sunday in Chicago:
 

President:                               Mark Mkrdichian
Vice-President:                        Sweetlana Aboona
Treasurer:                               Roger Ichou
Secretary:                               Nadia Joseph

Committee Chairpersons:
 By-laws/Membership              Martin Mirza
 Public/Lang./Hist/Cult             Peter Jasim
 Professional Counseling          Tony Khoshaba
 Public Relations                     Julianna Taimoorazy
 

The Assyrian Academic Society semi-annually
publishes the AAS Journal and promotes the
language, history, and culture of the Assyrian
civilization.  For more information contact:
   (708) 803-6776 or Fax (708) 803-4311
 

    ASSYRIAN ART ON DISPLAY IN CANADA

SC (Toronto) Dozens of Hannibal Alkhas and
Putrus Yakhanis' paintings along with several
wood carvings by Hurmoz Rashidzadeh were on
display this month at the Assyrian Centre in
Mississauga, Canada.  The exhibition of modern
Assyrian art was sponsored by the United Assyrian
Youth of Canada and the Ur Social Club of Ontario.
In a related event,  Youel Sarkis of Assyrian
Centre, Yosip Bet-Yosip from San Jose, California
and Hannibal Alkhas from Iran delivered speeches
on the Assyrian art and poetry.  Hannibal Alkhas
will be the guest of the Assyrian community in
Southern California from November 26 through
Tuesday, November 28.
 

MEMORIES OF THE ANCIENT MID EAST RESURFACE IN LEBANON
 

RU (Beirut) Ruins of the great civilizations which
flourished in the Middle East have been found as
reconstruction of Beirut and the archaeological
excavations continuue.  ``We have discovered several
relics with 12 distinct layers and colors...,'' Helene
Sader, an archaeologist at the American Univ. of Beirut,
said of one recent find of pottery and cups.  The
builder of the first Assyrian empire, Shamshi-Adad I
(1813-1781 B.C.)conquered Laban (Lebanon), the land of
valuable cedar so that he may reach the "marked
boundaries of the world." The Hariri Foundation,financed
from Prime Minister Hariri's personal fortune, and
UNESCO have donated $1.3 million to pay for excavations.
Solidere, a private development company,  is also
providing $3 million to finance excavations and altering reconstruction
plans so as not to damage the finds.
More than 350 foreign archaeologists, including 20
Americans, have expressed interest in participating in
the dig.
 

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  D I R E C T O R Y  OF THE  N E W S  S O U R C E S
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AA (AAA of San Jose Newsletter)
AP (Associate Press)
AS (Assyrian Server in Sweden)
EB (e.Babylon BBS): 1-209-668-1827
        Hollister, California
JS (Journal of the Assyrian Academic Society)
   P.O. Box 4102   Des Plaines, Illinois 60016-4102
NQ (Nebu Quarterly)
        P.O. Box 59422, Chicago  Illinois  60659
RU (Reuters)
SC (soc.culture.assyrian)
TN (Turkish News Agency)
WS (The Wall Street Journal)
ZN (Zenda Reporters):   zenda@ix.netcom.com
    Toronto, Germany, Chicago, Los Angeles, & San Jose
 

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       C A L E N D A R    OF     E V E N T S
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                               -----------------1 9 9 5-------------------
 

Sept 8-Dec 31   "Nineveh  612 BC:    A Public Exhibition of
                Assyrian Art and Artifacts"
                Finnish Science Center, Heureha
                (northern part of the Helsinki metrop. area)
 

Oct 1-Feb 4    Exhibition: Assyrian Art & History
                 Kimball  Art  Museum
                 Fort Worth, Texas
                 (817) 332-8451

Nov 28         The Simmons Family Lecture Series
                at the Gindi Auditorium
                University of Judaism
                15600 Mulholland Dr
                Los Angeles.
                "The West Semitic Alphabet
                 and the Spread of Civilization"
                 by Dr. Dennis Pardee
                 of University of Chicago
 

Dec 5           The Simmons Family Lecture Series
                 "King of the Four Quarters of
                  the Earth: Art, Power and
                  Politics in the Assyrian Empire"
                  by Dr. John Russell
                  of Columbia University
 

June 9-11 (1996) The ARAM Conference
                 Harvard University
                 Cambridge, Massachusetts  U.S.
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                  ENTERTAINMENT
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Dec 31        New Year's Eve Party
              Westin Hotel
              San Jose, California
              Entertainment:  Ogen
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                    MEETINGS
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Thursdays     Assyrian Educational & Cultural Club at
              Modesto Junior College
              1:00 pm
              Founders Hall 125.
 

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                    CLASSES
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Mondays       Assyrian Language Classes
              BETA:  AAA of San Jose
              7:00-8:30 pm
 

              Assyrian Discussion Group
              BETA:  AAA of  San Jose
              8:00-9:30 pm
 

Thursdays     Nineveh Choir:  Mastro Nebu Issabey
              BETA:  AAA of San Jose
              7:30-9:00 pm
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                    SPORTS
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Tuesdays      Boys Soccer Practice
              South Valley Christian School
              Corner of Blossom and Shawnee
              San Jose, California
              5-6:30 pm
 

Sundays       Boys/Girls Volleyball
              Campbell Community Center
              Camden & Union
              Campbell, California
              6-9 pm
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   A S S Y R I A N   S U R F I N G   P O S T S
=====================================================
                      NEW WEB SITE
Assyrian Songs
        http://users.aol.com/assyrianme/songs/
        assyrian.html
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Ancient Mesopotamia
        http://sipparorinst.uchicago.edu/OI/DEPT/RA/ABZ
        U/ABZU_REGINDX_MESO.HTML
 

Akkadian Language
         http://ruurq2.sron.ruu.nl/akkadian/
 

Assyria On-Line
        http://www.cs.toronto.edu/~jatou/./
 

Assyrian Flag
         http://www.cesi.it/flags/assyria.html
 

Assyrian Server (in Sweden)
         http://www.cs.umu.se/~dprhi/assyr/assyr.html
 

Assyrian Youth Association of Sweden
        http://www.cs.umu.se/~dprhi/assyr/assyr.html
 

Corpus Neo Assyrian Project:  Helsinki, Finland
        http://www.helsinki.fi/science/saa/cna.html
 

e.BABYLON
        http://www.garlic.com/~agabrial/babylon.htm
 

Journal of the Assyrian Academic Society
        http://www.garlic.com/~agabrial/jaas.htm
 

List of Books on Babylon
http://www.vuw.ac.nz/who/Jamie.Norrish/nephilim/
         Bibliographies/babylon.html
 

Mesopotamia
         http://www.singnet.com.sg/~edmonds/sumerian_
         main.html
 

"Newsgroup"     soc.culture.assyrian
 

Nineveh Kids Homepage
        http://www.garlic.com/~agabrial/kidsweb.htm
 

Syriac Comp Inst
        http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/users/gk105/syrcom/

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          P U M P  U P  T H E  V O L U M E
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ENGLISH     ASSYRIAN PRONUNCIATION with Examples

Rent       "mogroota"  (g as in 'dog')
  Aten lewit pooriyo mogroota'd aha yarkha.
  You have not paid this month's rent.
 

Escrow     "moolkana"
 

Loan       "eezapta"
   Ana sneeqa'd khda eezapta gha zwanta'd aha beta eewen.
   I need a loan to purchase this home.

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        B A C K    T O  T H E    F U T U R E
=====================================================
B.C.(740's) Assyrian sources indicate that Egyptian
and Philistine trade with Lebanon for timber was of
sufficient concern under Tiglath-Pileser III to call
forth an explicit interdiction from the Assyrian
authorities.
 

A.D.(9/17/1974)   During the 7th Assyrian Universal
Alliance Congress, assembled in Chicago, a demand on
behalf of the Assyrian Nation, under the leadership of
the late Malik Yagoub de Malik Ismail is made to the
Iraqi Government that an Autonomous State in the
territory between the Greater Zab and the Tigris River
in northern Bet-Nahrain be administered and protected
by the Assyrians.
 

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         W E L C O M E   T O   Z E N D A
=====================================================
Zenda welcomes our new on-line subscribers from:

             [UNIVERSITY ACCOUNTS]

California Polytechnic State University

             [INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNTS]

Seattle, Washington
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Sweden
Chicago
San Diego, California

          A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T S
=====================================================
Zenda wishes to thank the following individuals:

Sargon Tavoor           Los Angeles, California
Pauline Jasim           Chicago, Illinois
Ninos Yonan             Toronto, Canada
Esha Tamraz             San Jose, California
____________________________________________________
Please limit your letters to no more than three short
paragraphs.  ZENDA will continue to print your
comments and suggestions free of editing, as they
were received in our mailbox.  All letters appearing
in our mailbox will be printed in our SURFS UP! section
unless directed otherwise.
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Our Next Issue will appear on Monday, December 4, 1995.
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