LAWSUIT AGAINST TURKISH GOVERNMENT Armenian-Americans have filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles against the Turkish government. Attorneys say heirs of Armenians killed and driven out of Turkey in 1915 are entitled to billions of dollars for property seized from their ancestors. They are seeking class-action status for the case filed Thursday, AP reported. Attorneys say the case is the first Armenian lawsuit directly naming the Turkish government as a defendant. Also named are the Central Bank of Turkey and T.C., Ziraat Bankasi. E-mails to both banks were not immediately returned. The lawsuit says the property taken includes businesses, bank deposits and vast amounts of land. According to Hurriyet Daily, the new lawsuit was filed on behalf of plaintiffs Garbis Davouyan of Los Angeles and Hrayr Turabian of Queens, New York, stating a breach of statutory trust, unjust enrichment, human-rights violations and violations of international law. The case seeks compensation for land, buildings and businesses seized from Armenians, along with bank deposits and property, including religious and other artifacts, some of which are now housed in museums in Turkey. The lawsuit claims the government of Turkey agreed to administer the property, collecting rents and sale proceeds from the seized assets and depositing the receipts in trust accounts until the property could be restored to owners. Instead, the government has "withheld the property and any income derived from such property," the lawsuit said. | 
