YEREVAN, JUNE 19, NOYAN TAPAN. The chairman of the National Union of World's Yezids Aziz Tamoyan sent a letter to the US President Bush with the request to ensure security of Yezids living in the north of Iraq. During the June 19 press conference he said that with the aim of suppressing the "national liberation movement" of Kurds, the Turkish army has entered the northern part of Iraq where 1.2 million Yezids live. According to Aziz Tamoyan, these Yezids are persecuted by local Muslims. "Our cradle is the north of Iraq where Yezids have lived for over five thousand years," A. Tamoyan said. However, in his words, the condition of Yezids there has sharply worsened in the past two months: two months ago, Muslims have shot 24 people in a day only because they were Yezids. This terrorism with respect to Yezids is going on. The letter to President Bush in particular reads: "Iraq may be partitioned, with Sunni, Shiah and Kurdish states being created." In the opinion of A. Tamoyan, the state of Yezdistan should be created along with these three states. "We request that this territory be considered as administrative part of the US. We want the US as superpower to solve our problems. Today the fate of the Yezid people depends on the US only because its troops are already in Iraq," A. Tamoyan stated, adding that US troops must prevent Turks from harming the Yezids who live in North Iraq.

---