Israel’s government on Sunday approved a proposal in the Knesset to recognise the Armenian genocide, in an apparent rebuke to Turkey amid deteriorating relations.
Commentators have blasted the move as ironic, given that UN experts and leading rights groups have determined that Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza.
This comes after a proposal was submitted last week by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, aimed at officially recognising the Armenian genocide and condemning any attempts to minimise or deny it.
While the decision still requires ratification by the Israeli Knesset, Sa’ar has praised it.
“It’s never too late to do the right thing,” Sa’ar wrote on X.
“I thank Israeli PM Netanyahu for his support, and the government ministers for their unanimous approval of the resolution I initiated for Israel’s recognition of the Armenian Genocide. Thus, Israel joins 32 countries that have fulfilled a moral duty by recognising the historical truth and rejecting attempts to deny it,” he added.
The Armenian genocide, which refers to the killing and targeting of Armenian Christians by people living in the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1916, is not officially recognised by some countries, including Turkey, Pakistan and Azerbaijan.
Turkey states that Armenians and Turks died as a result of World War One, denying accusations and putting the death toll at hundreds of thousands, rather than the often cited 1.5 million.
Turkey continues to reject calls to formally recognise it as a genocide.
Eldar Mamedov, a Brussels-based foreign policy expert who serves the Pugwash Council on Science & World Affairs, described Israel’s recognition of the Armenian genocide as a “cynical opportunistic move designed to ratchet up tensions with Turkey.”
“Israel increasingly frames Turkey as the “emerging threat” (according to the opposition leader Naftali Bennett) and a strategic obstacle to Israel’s plans to establish regional hegemony in the Middle East,” Mamedov told The New Arab.
“Israeli and pro-Israeli officials and pundits, such as the Washington-based Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) increasingly target Turkey using the same playbook they applied to Iran for decades: exaggerate its “Islamism”; painting Turkey as the leader of a new, so-called “Sunni axis” supposedly consisting also of Hamas, new Syrian regime, Qatar and transnational Muslim Brotherhood; portraying Turkish domestic policies as a retreat from democracy etc.”
He continued: “Part of this campaign focuses on minorities issues – Kurds, which Netanyahu accused Erdogan of mistreating, and now Armenians.”
Mamedov further warned that the decision is likely going to further the rift between Israel and Turkey, particularly as the latter has lambasted Israel over its war in Gaza since 2023.
“Of course it was an intentional rebuke designed to fuel tensions with Turkey which Israel now frames as its new “threat”,” he told The New Arab.
“Turkey will respond diplomatically, but it remains to be seen whether Ankara will finally stop the flow of Azerbaijani oil to Israel through its Ceyhan port – which never stopped even at the peak of genocide. Ankara and Baku are close allies, but they have differing views on Israel.”
He added: “So far they managed these differences, but as Israel increasingly treats Turkey as an enemy, those ties, in this aspect, may be put under strain.”
Turkey has since criticised the move, describing Israel’s recognition of the Armenian genocide as a “political” decision aimed at deflecting attention from its own alleged actions.
“The Israeli government, which has systematically persecuted the Palestinian people before the eyes of the entire world and is being tried at the International Court of Justice on charges of committing genocide against the people of Gaza, is seeking to cover up its own crimes through the political decision it has adopted regarding the events of 1915,” said a foreign ministry statement.
The foreign ministry added: “Turkey will continue to work resolutely to bring an end to Israel’s expansionist and destabilising policies in the region.”
Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been a vocal critic of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at times comparing him to Nazi officials.
The two countries are also at odds in Syria, where Israel has sought to undermine Ahmed al-Sharaa’s government, which has been supported by Turkey.
‘Ironic’
The move has also been slammed as ironic by commentators, noting that Israel’s war on Gaza has killed over 73,000 Palestinians, with officials calling for further destruction in the enclave.
“How ironic: the Israeli government -itself a genocidal government – has recognised the Armenian Genocide. And even against the Armenians, Israel committed massacres in the Karabakh region in 2020. At the time, it sent officers and weapons, tested military AI technologies, contributed to the killing of thousands of young Armenians, and helped Azerbaijan occupy Karabakh. In return, it received money and gained advanced military positions near Iran’s borders,” one social media user commented.
“It’s 2026 & Gaza is littered with bodies of tens of thousands of women and children that the State of Israel has mass murdered, but you really like to talk about crimes that were committed by others a 100 years ago,” another wrote.
Others used the opportunity to demand that Israel halt its killings in Gaza, and acknowledge its crimes in the enclave.
“History should not be used selectively to score political points. Before lecturing others about history, perhaps acknowledge your own government’s conduct in Gaza, where it faces international accusations of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide,” one person said.
Observers also highlighted that Israel has backed Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia.
“For decades Israel forged a close alliance with Azerbaijan, buying its oil in exchange for securing intelligence foothold on Iran’s border and sellng highly advanced weapons (as reported in detail by Haaretz) that Azerbaijan used to ethnically cleanse the Armenian population from Karabakh in 2023,” Mamedov told The New Arab.
“So, no one can believe the sincerity of this move.”
Israeli defence companies are among the biggest suppliers of arms to the Azeri government, which fought a war with Armenia in 2020 to take control of the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.
In 2023, Azeri forces took control of the region and drove out 100,000 Armenians after launching a major offensive.
Editor’s note: This article was updated at 20:36 on Sunday 28 June to include additional comments from the Turkish foreign ministry.
—
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Eduard Nalbandian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2026/06/28/israel-recognises-armenian-genocide-in-move-slammed-as-ironic-amid-gaza-onsl/