The Worcester Armenian Festival is Finally Back

Wanjiru Waweru, Jadetimes Staff

W. Waweru is Jadetimes news reporter covering American News

---

Image Source : Spectrum News

Worcester, Massachusetts — The Kitchen at the Armenian Church of Our Savior is represented as Volunteers and Organizers ready for Worcester’s Armenian Festival. And the celebrity of the Cultural Event that is filled with Armenian Cuisine such as pastries, dried fruit, and the famous lamb kabob. 

Kap Maksian volunteers for this event and explains how to make Armenian food healthy so that others can enjoy the festival.

“We do this by hand to make sure all of the pieces are fat free,” said Maksian. “We take the fat and gristle off so people when they come, can enjoy a great meal.”

Participants could purchase genuine gifts, observe more about the church, and traditions, and join a lot of entertainment, and performances by an Armenian Dancer. The food and entertainment are very meaningful to the Armenian Culture. 

Father Tadeos Barsegyhan reported that the festival goes far and beyond. 

“We like to say we might be a small community, but we are a mighty community,” said Barseghyan. “We are a dedicated community. A committed community to our heritage and to our culture, so that’s what matters to us.”

There is an enormous Armenian community in New England that connects to the City of Worcester.

“Worcester is the oldest Armenian community in the country and our church that we are in is the oldest Armenian church in America,” said Barseghyan. “So there’s a large community here that has been here before Armenian genocide and of course, many came after.”

This year, the organizations are extending the festival within two days to bring more people to celebrate the culture of Armenia. The event is welcome to the community. Barseghyan reported that they become ready to duplex the crowd.

“The festival is not only for Armenians. It’s for our neighbors, our city, our town. Adding that Armenian flavor to the city of Worcester,” said Barseghyan. “We invite everyone to come and share our heritage, our culture, and have a great time here. Why not.”

Image Source: Eventbrite

The festival is located at the Armenian Church of our Saviour on Salisbury Street. Admission is free at no cost. The event begins from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday.

JetBlue Extending More Worcester to Orlando flight in April 2025 for the Spring Voyage Command

Wanjiru Waweru, Jadetimes Staff

W. Waweru is a Jadetimes News Reporter covering Travel News

---

Image Source : Spectrum News

Worcester, Massachusetts — JetBlue is enlarging its service from Worcester to Orlando throughout April of 2025.

The airline reported that they are connecting the customer command for the month.

In an announcement to Spectrum News 1, JetBlue Corporate Communications reported, "As JetBlue continues to grow in New England and underscores its position as the leading leisure carrier, we will be increasing service from Worcester Regional Airport (ORH) to Orlando International Airport (MCO) during the month of April, a popular time for spring break travel, to match the strong customer demand shown in this month. This added frequency, paired with increased frequency on the Worcester-Fort Myers route, will increase the number seats JetBlue offers out of Worcester in April by over 50% year over year." 

Following JetBlue’s website, they will eventually provide two round-trip flights for four-day availabilities: Sundays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays.

The airline reported they have continuously estimated their routes to prime provide their customers.

JetBlue renewed constant service from Worcester Regional Airport to Orlando in June 2023.

Iran Hack SMS Sweden

Thiloththama Jayasinghe, Jadetimes Staff

T. Jayasinghe is a Jadetimes news reporter covering Political News

---

Image Source : Majid Asgaripour/West Asia News Agency

That Swedish citizens were targeted en masse, according to the recent revelation by Sweden's security service, Sapo, that Iranian intelligence was behind a major cyberattack, marks a worrying escalation of international cyber war. After anti-Islam activists in Sweden burned copies of the Quran this summer-which is an act protected under the country's free speech laws-15,000 SMS messages were sent to Swedes this summer calling for "revenge against Quran-burners.". This hacking incident has brought into sharp focus the sensitive balance in protecting freedom of expression on one side and national security on the other.

Sapo's investigation tracked the attacker to a cyber group, Anzu, working at the behest of Iran's IRGC. The attack appeared to be part of a more comprehensive game plan to destabilize Sweden based on religious divisive issues, trying to portray the country as Islamophobic. Although the Swedish government had denounced the Quran burnings and police had attempted to stop them, courts maintained freedom of expression. The stance of the legal system only fed international outrage; in one incident, protesters burned down Sweden's embassy in Iraq, further inflaming geopolitical tensions.

The incident highlights an increasing pattern of digital attacks that inflame social divisions. The Anzu group hacked into the SMS service of a Swedish company in early August 2023, sending provocative messages to private individuals and demanding punishment for anyone offending the Quran. According to Sapo's Fredrik Hallstrom, the Revolutionary Guards were directly involved; this further fuels concern about state-sponsored attacks on Sweden's digital infrastructure.

According to the prosecutor leading the investigation, Mats Ljungqvist, Swedish authorities were able to identify the hackers. However, international legal hurdles will most probably ensure that the attackers evade extradition. This impunity in sentencing is one of the most critical concerns in this aspect of threat landscape remediation, wherein hostile foreign powers may wage cyberattacks on a country with impunity.

The justice minister of Sweden, Gunnar Strommer, assailed the acts of Iran as a serious attempt at destabilization using social divisions. This is not an incident in isolation; earlier, Sweden's security service has accused Iran of "using criminal networks in Sweden" to carry out violent acts against perceived threats.

They have a wider significance for Sweden, demonstrating how war between nation-states has perhaps changed irreversibly. Such an intrusion into civilian communication systems can enable foreign powers like Iran to influence public sentiment directly, fostering societal divisions and thereby destabilizing governments. This represents a new frontier in the conflict between nations, where digital attacks will increasingly become weapons of ideological and political disruption.

While Sweden, among others, grapples with how free speech and national security are crossing, this is one such incident showing how democratic societies are vulnerable in the digital age. It again calls for stringent cybersecurity measures, coordination between nations, and legislation to handle the increasing threat of state-sponsored cyberattacks that have been used to destroy societies.