Author: Kajoyan Gevork

Pope boosts Armenia’s efforts to have Ottoman killings recognised as genocide

Pope Francis delivers powerful message by recognising atrocities
between 1915 and 1922 as genocide in speech at Vatican on eve of
centenary

Pope Francis and the head of Armenia’s Orthodox church, Karekin II,
greet each other during an Armenian-rite mass in St Peter’s Basilica.
Photograph: Gregorio Borgia/AP

Ian Black in Yerevan and Rosie Scammell in Rome

Sunday 12 April 2015 18.12 BST Last modified on Sunday 12 April 2015 20.02 BST

Armenia’s efforts to promote greater awareness of the massacre of 1.5
million of its people by Turkey during the fall of the Ottoman empire
were given a dramatic boost on Sunday by the pope’s description of the
atrocities as `the first genocide of the 20th century’ ` days ahead of
the centenary of the event.

Pope Francis used a special mass in St Peter’s Basilica to mark the
anniversary, and referred to `three massive and unprecedented
tragedies’ of the last century.

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`The first, which is widely considered the first genocide of the 20th
century, struck your own Armenian people,’ the pontiff said. `Bishops
and priests, religious women and men, the elderly and even defenceless
children and the infirm were murdered.’

Historians estimate that as many as 1.5 million Armenians were killed
in state-organised violence between 1915 and 1922. Russia, France and
about 20 other countries recognise it as genocide.

The US and Britain do not, however: most likely to avoid angering
their Nato ally. The Turkish government rejects the term and
emphasises wartime conditions, although in recent years it has
acknowledged Armenian suffering.

Turkey immediately summoned the papal ambassador to Ankara to express
its displeasure and later recalled its ambassador from the Vatican.
The foreign ministry said the pope had contradicted his message of
peace and dialogue during a visit to Turkey in November.

Expressing `great disappointment and sadness’, it called the message
discriminatory because it only mentioned the pain suffered by
Christian Armenians, and not Muslims and other religious groups.

The fate of the Armenians and impunity for their killers has come to
be seen as foreshadowing the Nazi extermination of 6 million Jews 25
years later. The concept of genocide was recognised by the UN in 1948.
Armenia hopes wider international recognition will increase pressure
on Turkey, though their relations are complicated by other factors,
including the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over
Nagorno-Karabakh.

Pope Francis calls Armenian massacre `first genocide of 20th century’

Strictly speaking, it was not the first such announcement. In 2001
Pope John Paul II and Kerekin II, the leader of the Armenian Apostolic
church, used identical language to that used by Pope Francis on
Sunday. The original statement, however, was issued in Echmiadzin, the
Armenian equivalent of the Vatican, rather than in Rome.

Analysts said the timing was also highly significant, coming so close
to the 24 April commemoration event in Yerevan and around the world.
Turkey has infuriated Armenians by choosing to mark the centenary of
the wartime Gallipoli landings on exactly the same date, a move
deliberately designed to overshadow remembrance of the genocide.
Gallipoli has never before been commemorated on that day.

President Recep Tayyip ErdoÄ?an also ignored an invitation from the
Armenian president, Serž Sargasyan, for him to come to Yerevan. The
Armenian government is expected to welcome the statement when
Sargasyan, who attended the mass, returns from Rome.

`This is the first time a mass was dedicated to the Armenian genocide
victims in St Peter’s,’ said commentator Ara Tadevosyan. `The pope’s
acknowledgement that ours was the first genocide of the 20th century
is very important. It’s another sign that the civilized world is
accepting what happened to us despite all the pressure from Turkey.’

The pontiff’s decision to bracket the mass killing of Armenians with
the crimes perpetrated by Nazism and Stalinism gives the Vatican’s
`highest sanction’ to genocide recognition, said Theo van Lint, a
professor of Armenian studies at the University of Oxford. `I think
it’s very important to realise he gave space to the leaders, the heads
of the Armenian church and Armenian Catholics, to fully give their
view of events. It’s very clear that the pope accepts that it is a
genocide.’

The pope was joined by Kerekin II, Sargasyan and other dignitaries.
Allowing Armenian leaders to speak in St Peter’s Basilica was
described as a `strategic move’ by Van Lint.

Igor Dorfmann-Lazarev, a researcher on Armenian history at the School
of Oriental and African Studies (Soas) in London, said the ceremony
also demonstrated the pope’s efforts to put peripheral Christian
groups at the centre of the Catholic church. `This is the first time
that Armenia is the centre of attention of Catholic life and the
Christian world,’ he said. `It’s meant to draw attention to the
Christian east.’

Pope Francis also declared a 10th-century Armenian monk, St Gregory of
Narek, a `doctor of the church’. The mystic and poet is celebrated for
his writings, some of which are still recited in Armenian churches.

Britain will be represented at the Yerevan genocide centennial by the
Conservative MP John Whittingdale, the chairman of the
British-Armenian all-party group. The UK representation at the
Gallipoli anniversary will be led by the Prince of Wales.

The Associated Press in Ankara contributed to this report

Armenian FM: Armenian Genocide is the gravest international crime

16:46, 06.04.2015

Region:Armenia, Turkey
Theme: Politics, Analytics

This year Armenia and Armenians all over the globe will mark
centennial anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The commemorations
have four main directions, Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian said in
an interview with the International Affairs magazine of Russia.

First of all Armenians will honor Genocide victims, and the Armenian
church will canonize the victims. Secondly, Armenians will express
their gratitude to those who stretched pout a helping hand to the
Armenian people. Thirdly, it is important to step up efforts aimed at
prevention of new genocides and crimes against humanity. And the
fourth important direction is revival: the Armenian nation managed to
survive genocide and revive.

The Minister emphasized that Armenia, together with international
community, will mark the Armenian Genocide Centennial with “Never
Again” motto, adding that the Armenian Genocide is obviously the
gravest international crime.

Minister Nalbandian highlighted Armenia’s contribution to the efforts
into prevention of similar crimes. As an example he cited the draft
resolution on genocide prevention that was initiated by Armenia at the
United Nations Human Rights Council.

Armenians all over the world are united in the opinion that the
genocide must be condemned by the international community – by all who
consider themselves part of the civilized world and share human
values, he said.

Speaking about Armenian president’s invitation to Turkish leader Recep
Tayyip Erdogan to visit Yerevan on April 24, Nalbandian said:
“Unfortunately, our invitation remained unanswered, becoming another
missed opportunity for Turkey’s leadership.”

Armenia News – NEWS.am

President Sargsyan, top Armenian clergy attend papal mass on Genocide Centennial

GENOCIDE | 12.04.15 | 12:53

Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, Catholicoi Karekin II and Aram I,
the supreme heads of the Armenian Apostolic Church, on Sunday attended
a landmark mass by Pope Francis in the Vatican served on the 100th
anniversary of the 1915 Armenian Genocide in Ottoman Turkey.

The head of the Roman Catholic Church concelebrated the mass in the
Armenian Catholic rite in St. Peter’s Basilica with Patriarch Nerses
Bedros XIX, the Lebanon-based leader of Armenian Catholics.

In his speech, Pope Francis used the world genocide in describing the
mass killings of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey a century ago.

“In the past century our human family had lived through three massive
and unprecedented tragedies. The first, which is widely considered
‘the first genocide of the 20th century’, struck your own Armenian
people,” the pontiff, in particular, said.

Pope Francis already angered Ankara in 2013 when he publicly referred
to the mass killings and deportations of Armenians as “the first
genocide of the 20th century.” He called on the Turkish state to
recognize the genocide in 2006 when he was known as Archbishop Jorge
Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires.

The mass served in the Vatican on Sunday is likely to evoke more angry
reactions in Turkey that denies that the 1915 killings of Armenians
constituted genocide.

In another significant development during the event on Sunday, Pope
Francis bestowed the prestigious Catholic title of “Doctor of the
Church” on St. Gregory of Narek, a 10th-11th century Armenian cleric
renowned for his religious writings. Only 36 saints have so far been
given the title.

AsiaOne
April 12 2015

Pope marks 100th anniversary of Armenia genocide

AFPSunday, Apr 12, 2015

VATICAN CITY – Pope Francis faces a key diplomatic test Sunday as he
marks the centenary of the mass killings of Armenians and elects
whether to use the word “genocide”, at the risk of alienating Turkey.

The 78-year old head of the Roman Catholic Church is under pressure to
use the term publicly to describe the Ottoman Turk murders, but will
be wary of alienating an important ally in the fight against radical
Islam.

While many historians describe the cull as the 20th century’s first
genocide, Turkey hotly denies the accusation.

Francis and Armenian patriarch Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni will
celebrate a mass in Saint Peter’s Basilica, which will include
elements of the Armenian Catholic rite and be attended by the
country’s President Serzh Sargsyan.

During the ceremony Francis will proclaim a 10th-century Armenian monk
a “Doctor of the Church”, making Saint Gregory just one of 36 saintly
theologians whose writings are considered to hold key insights on the
Catholic faith.

The mass, which begins at 0700 GMT, is being held ahead of the
official April 24 commemoration of the murders.

Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kin were killed between 1915
and 1917 as the Ottoman Empire was falling apart, and have long sought
to win international recognition of the massacres as genocide.

But Turkey rejects the claims, arguing that 300,000 to 500,000
Armenians and as many Turks died in civil strife when Armenians rose
up against their Ottoman rulers and sided with invading Russian
troops.

The Vatican has a long history of support for the Armenians: as early
as 1915, pope Benedict XV wrote two letters to Sultan Mohammed V
asking him to intervene in the mass killings, but his pleas fell on
deaf ears.

Using the word would not be a papal first: John Paul II used it in a
joint statement signed with the Armenian patriarch in 2000 which said
“the Armenian genocide, which began the century, was a prologue to
horrors that would follow”.

But it provoked outrage in Turkey, and a year later during a trip to
Armenia the pontiff avoided using the term, instead opting for “Metz
Yeghern”, an expression meaning “Great Evil”, used by Armenians to
describe the killings.

Pope calls Armenian massacre first genocide of 20th century, disappoints Turkey

APRIL 12TH, 2015 FEATURED, INTERNATIONAL
By Steve Scherer

Pope Francis described the massacre of as many as 1.5 million
Armenians as “the first genocide of the 20th century” at a 100th
anniversary Mass on Sunday, prompting Turkey to summon the Holy See’s
ambassador in Ankara in protest.

Muslim Turkey accepts that many Christian Armenians died in clashes
with Ottoman soldiers beginning in 1915, when Armenia was part of the
empire ruled from Istanbul, but denies hundreds of thousands were
killed and that this amounted to genocide.

It was the first time a pope has publicly pronounced the word
“genocide” for the massacre, repeating a term used by some European
and South American countries but avoided by the United States and some
others to maintain good relations with an important ally.

In 2001, Pope John Paul II and Armenian Apostolic Church Supreme
Patriarch Kerekin II called it “the first genocide of the 20th
century” in a joint written statement.

Francis, who has disregarded many aspects of protocol since becoming
pope two years ago, uttered the phrase during a private meeting at the
Vatican with an Armenian delegation in 2013, prompting a strong
protest from Ankara.

As the archbishop of Buenos Aires before becoming the leader of the
world’s 1.2 billion Catholics, Jorge Maria Bergoglio had already
publicly characterised the mass killings as genocide.

After Francis’s remarks on Sunday, Turkey swiftly summoned the
Vatican’s ambassador in Ankara to protest and seek an explanation, a
senior official told Reuters. The foreign ministry was expected to
make a statement later in the day.

In November, the Argentine-born pontiff made an official visit to
Turkey as part of his efforts to solidify relations with moderate
Muslim states.

DENYING EVIL

At the start of the Armenian rite Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope
Francis described the “senseless slaughter” of 100 years ago as “the
first genocide of the 20th century”, which was followed by “Nazism and
Stalinism”.

“It is necessary, and indeed a duty, to honour their memory, for
whenever memory fades, it means that evil allows wounds to fester.
Concealing or denying evil is like allowing a wound to keep bleeding
without bandaging it!” he said.

Francis’s comments were also published by Armenian President Serzh
Sargyan’s office on Sunday.

“We are deeply grateful to His Holiness Pope Francis for the idea of
this unprecedented liturgy … which symbolizes our solidarity with the
people of the Christian world,” Sargyan said in a speech at a Vatican
dinner on Saturday evening.

The pope said genocide continues today against Christians “who, on
account of their faith in Christ or their ethnic origin, are publicly
and ruthlessly put to death – decapitated, crucified, burned alive –
or forced to leave their homeland.”

Islamic State insurgents have persecuted Shi’ite Muslims, Christians
and others who do not share their ultra-radical brand of Sunni Islam
as they carved a self-declared caliphate out of swathes of Syria and
Iraq, which share borders with Turkey.

Francis also urged reconciliation between Turkey and Armenia, and
between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed Caucasus mountain
region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The appeal came in a letter handed out
during a meeting after the Mass to Sargyan and the three most
important Armenian church patriarchs present.

COMMUNAUTE-ROMANS (DRÔME)
Les 1000 ans de traditions musicales en Arm̩nie ont fait vibrer Romans РPhotos

Samedi 11 mars à 20h00 près de 200 personnes étaient présentes à la
Cité de la Musique à Romans (Drôme) pour le spectacle >, des danses et musiques
traditionnelles d’Arménie du Xe siècle à nos jours. Le public composé
pour une majorité de non-Arméniens aura ainsi vibré aux sons de la
musique, des chants et danses d’Arménie. L’orchestre France Varpet,
Lévon Chatikyan (doudouk, chvi, zourna), Chaké Dounouyan (chant),
Hovhanes Manukyan (chant), Souren Manukyan (accordéon), Aram Vardanyan
(tar), Mucher Harutyunyan (dhol) ont fait superbement partager avec le
public la tradition musicale et les chants d’Arménie.

Du kamantcha, au dhol, du douduk au thr la musique d’Arménie avait
envahi Romans. Des oeuvres du mystique Krikor Narégatsi au poète et
troubadour Sayat Nova, de Djivani à Komitas et Khatchatour Avetissian,
la musique venue des profondeurs de temps ont transporté le public
-dont un nombre important découvrait la musique arménienne- vers le
plateau arménien, de l’Arménie occidentale au Caucase. Les voix
mélodieuses d’Hovhanes Manukyan et la celle plus puissante de V.
Davtyan ont enchanté le public. Tout comme la jeune et très
talentueuse Chaké Dounouyan sublime dans l’interprétation des chansons
> ou d’> le public fut captivé par la
grce de la voie de la chanteuse. A noter que nombre de prestations
étaient accompagnées par la troupe de danse folkloriques de l’école
-Académie- de Lévon Chatikyan formée de jeunes de la région de Valence
et Romans.

Krikor Amirzayan texte et reportage-photo à Romans (Drôme)

dimanche 12 avril 2015,
Krikor Amirzayan (c)armenews.com

Chris Bohjalian urges Obama to follow Pope Francis’ example

17:15, 12 April, 2015

YEREVAN, APRIL 12, ARMENPRESS. Chris Bohjalian, the famous American
Armenian writer, the author of one of the US bestselling book The
Sandcastle Girls, has reflected on the Divine Liturgy dedicated to the
100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide offered by Pope Francis in
St. Peter’s Basilica today and expressed his admiration with the
statement made by the Pope.

As reports “Armenpress”, the prominent American-Armenian author made a
post on this on Facebook and particularly underscored: “So proud that
Pope Francis called the Armenian Genocide a Genocide. Murder cannot be
hid long: The truth will out. I encourage President Obama to show the
same spine and moral compass now.”

Previously it was reported that in his sermon during the Divine
Liturgy dedicated to the 100th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide
offered in St. Peter’s Basilica, Pope Francis called the mass killings
and massacres of the Armenian people in the Ottoman Turkey in 1915 a
Genocide. He said that the slaughter of the Armenians was the first
genocide of the 20th century.

Among other things, Pope Francis said the Armenian killings were the
first of three “massive and unprecedented” genocides that was followed
by the Holocaust and Stalinism. He said others had followed, including
in Cambodia, Rwanda, Burundi and Bosnia.

The Pope welcomed the President of the Republic of Armenia Serzh
Sargsyan, the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians His
Holiness Karekin II, the Catholicos of the Great House of Cilicia Aram
I and the Catholicos Patriarch of the House of Cilicia Nerses Petros
XIX, who attended the liturgy.

Pope Francis also honored the Armenian community at the start of the
Mass by pronouncing a 10th-century Armenian mystic, St. Gregory of
Narek, a doctor of the church. Only 35 people have been given the
title, which is reserved for those whose writings have greatly served
the universal church.

REVUE DE PRESSE
BFM TV- Le pape François utilise le mot génocide à propos du massacre
des Arméniens

Dimanche, le pape François a qualifié le massacre des Arméniens il y a
cent ans de “génocide”. Au risque de perturber fortement ses relations
diplomatiques avec la Turquie.

La déclaration du pape François pourrait fortement refroidir ses
relations diplomatiques avec la Turquie. Dimanche, dans le cadre
solennel de la basilique Saint-Pierre de Rome, il a utilisé le terme
“génocide” pour évoquer le massacre des Arméniens il y a cent ans.

“Au siècle dernier, notre famille humaine a traversé trois tragédies
massives et sans précédent. La première, qui est largement considérée
comme ‘le premier génocide du XXe siècle’ a frappé votre peuple
arménien”, a déclaré le pontife en citant un document signé en 2001
(bien 2001) par le pape Jean Paul II et le patriarche arménien.

“Les deux autres ont été ceux perpétrés par le nazisme et par le
stalinisme. Et plus récemment d’autres exterminations de masse, comme
celles au Cambodge, au Rwanda, au Burundi, en Bosnie”, a-t-il ajouté.
Une première pour un pontife

Le pape François s’est exprimé à l’ouverture d’une messe à la mémoire
des Arméniens massacrés entre 1915 et 1917, concélébrée avec le
patriarche arménien Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni, avec des éléments du
rite catholique arménien et en présence du président du pays, Serzh
Sargsyan.

Même si Jean Paul II avait utilisé le terme en 2000 dans le document
commun et que Jorge Bergoglio l’avait utilisé plusieurs fois avant de
devenir pape il y a deux ans et même au moins une fois en privé
depuis, c’est la première fois qu’il est prononcé publiquement par un
pontife.

Les Arméniens estiment que 1,5 million des leurs ont été tués entre
1915 et 1917, à la fin de l’empire ottoman. Nombre d’historiens et
plus d’une vingtaine de pays, dont la France, l’Italie et la Russie,
ont reconnu un génocide. La Turquie affirme pour sa part qu’il
s’agissait d’une guerre civile dans laquelle 300 à 500.000 Arméniens
et autant de Turcs ont trouvé la mort. Il y a un an, le Premier
ministre turc Erdogan avait par ailleurs présenté les condoléances de
la Turquie aux descendants des “Arméniens tués en 1915”.

Par A. K. avec AFP

dimanche 12 avril 2015,
Stéphane (c)armenews.com

WSFA (NBC)
April 12 2015

Turkey recalls ambassador after pope’s Armenia genocide call

By NICOLE WINFIELD
Associated Press

VATICAN CITY (AP) – Pope Francis on Sunday called the slaughter of
Armenians by Ottoman Turks “the first genocide of the 20th century”
and urged the international community to recognize it as such,
sparking a diplomatic rift with Turkey at a delicate time in
Christian-Muslim relations.

Armenian President Serge Sarkisian, who was on hand to mark the 100th
anniversary of the slaughter at a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica,
praised the pope for calling a spade a spade in an interview with The
Associated Press. But Turkey, which has long denied a genocide took
place, recalled its ambassador to the Holy See in protest.

“The pope’s statement, which is far from historic and legal truths, is
unacceptable,” Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu tweeted.
“Religious positions are not places where unfounded claims are made
and hatred is stirred.”

Francis, who has close ties to the Armenian community from his days in
Argentina, defended his pronouncement by saying it was his duty to
honor the memory of the innocent men, women and children who were
“senselessly” murdered by Ottoman Turks.

“Concealing or denying evil is like allowing a wound to keep bleeding
without bandaging it,” he said at the start of a Mass in the Armenian
Catholic rite honoring the centenary.

In a subsequent message directed to all Armenians, Francis called on
all heads of state and international organizations to recognize the
truth of what transpired to prevent such “horrors” from happening
again, and to oppose such crimes “without ceding to ambiguity or
compromise.”

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I, an event widely viewed
by scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century.

Turkey, however, has insisted that the toll has been inflated, and
that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest, not genocide.
It has fiercely lobbied to prevent countries, including the Holy See,
from officially recognizing the Armenian massacre as genocide.

Turkey’s embassy to the Holy See canceled a planned news conference
for Sunday, presumably after learning that the pope would utter the
word “genocide” over its objections. Instead, the Foreign Ministry in
Ankara summoned the Vatican’s envoy, and then announced it was
recalling its own ambassador to the Vatican for consultations.

In a statement, it said the Turkish people would not recognize the
pope’s statement “which is controversial in every aspect, which is
based on prejudice, which distorts history and reduces the pains
suffered in Anatolia under the conditions of the First World War to
members of just one religion.”

Francis’ words had a more positive effect in St. Peters, where the
head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Aram I thanked Francis for his
clear condemnation and recalled that “genocide” is a crime against
humanity that requires reparation.

“International law spells out clearly that condemnation, recognition
and reparation of a genocide are closely interconnected,” Aram said in
English at the end of the Mass to applause from the pews, where many
wept.

In an interview with the AP after the Mass, the Armenian president,
Sarkisian, praised Francis for “calling things by their names.”

He acknowledged the reparation issue, but said “for our people, the
primary issue is universal recognition of the Armenian genocide,
including recognition by Turkey.”

He dismissed Turkish calls for joint research into what transpired,
saying researchers and commissions have already come to the conclusion
and there is “no doubt at all that what happened was a genocide.”

Several European countries recognize the massacres as genocide, though
Italy and the United States, for example, have avoided using the term
officially given the importance they place on Turkey as an ally.

The Holy See, too, places great importance in its relationship with
the moderate Muslim nation, especially as it demands Muslim leaders
condemn the slaughter of Christians by Muslim extremists in
neighboring Iraq and Syria.

But Francis’ willingness to rile Ankara with his words showed once
again that he has few qualms about taking diplomatic risks for issues
close to his heart. He took a similar risk by inviting the Israeli and
Palestinian presidents to pray together for peace at the Vatican – a
summit that was followed by the outbreak of fighting in the Gaza
Strip.

Francis is not the first pope to call the massacre a genocide. In his
remarks, Francis cited a 2001 declaration signed by St. John Paul II
and the Armenian church leader, Karenkin II, which said the deaths
were considered “the first genocide of the 20th century.”

But the context of Francis’ pronunciation was different and
significant: He uttered the words during an Armenian rite Mass in St.
Peter’s marking the 100th anniversary of the slaughter, alongside the
Armenian Catholic patriarch, Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni, Armenian
Christian church leaders and Sarkisian, who sat in a place of honor in
the basilica.

The definition of genocide has long been contentious. The United
Nations in 1948 defined genocide as killing and other acts intended to
destroy a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, but many
dispute which mass killings should be called genocide and whether the
terms of the U.N. convention on genocide can be applied retroactively.

Reaction to the pope’s declaration on the streets in Istanbul was
mixed. Some said they supported it, but others did not agree.

“I don’t support the word genocide being used by a great religious
figure who has many followers,” said Mucahit Yucedal, 25. “Genocide is
a serious allegation.”

AP writers Desmond Butler and Ayse Wieting in Istanbul and Suzan
Fraser in Ankara contributed to this report.

Follow Nicole Winfield at

Belfast Telegraph
April 12 2015

Turkey angry at Pope genocide claim

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of the First World War, an event widely
viewed by scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century.

Turkey has summoned the Vatican’s Ankara envoy to express its unease
after Pope Francis called the killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks
100 years ago genocide.

Earlier the Pope called the slaughter of Armenians around the time of
the First World War “the first genocide of the 20th century” and urged
the international community to recognise it.

Turkey has long refused to call the event a genocide and has insisted
that the toll has been inflated, and that those killed were victims of
civil war and unrest.

The Pope, who has close ties to the Armenian community from his days
in Argentina, defended his pronouncement by saying it was his duty to
honour the memory of the innocent men, women and children who were
“senselessly” murdered by Ottoman Turks 100 years ago this month.

“Concealing or denying evil is like allowing a wound to keep bleeding
without bandaging it,” he said at the start of a Mass in the Armenian
Catholic rite in St Peter’s Basilica honouring the centenary.

In a subsequent message directed to all Armenians, Francis called on
all heads of state and international organisations to recognise the
truth of what transpired and oppose such crimes “without ceding to
ambiguity or compromise”.

Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by
Ottoman Turks around the time of the First World War, an event widely
viewed by scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century.

Turkey, however, has insisted that the toll has been inflated, and
that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest, not genocide.
It has fiercely lobbied to prevent countries, including the Holy See,
from officially recognising the Armenian massacre as genocide.

Turkey’s embassy to the Holy See cancelled a planned news conference
today, presumably after learning that the Pope would utter the word
“genocide” over its objections.

However the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Aram I, thanked
Francis for his clear condemnation and recall that “genocide” is a
crime against humanity that requires reparation.

“International law spells out clearly that condemnation, recognition
and reparation of a genocide are closely interconnected,” Aram said in
English at the end of the Mass to applause from the pews.

Speaking as if he were at a political rally, Aram said the Armenian
cause is a cause of justice, and that justice is a gift of God.
“Therefore, the violation of justice is a sin against God,” he said.