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Israel Foreign Minister to Propose Recognizing Armenian Mass Killings as Genocide
Sa'ar says the move would formally recognize the genocide and condemn denial, as 32 countries have already done.
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar announced Thursday that he will submit a resolution for the government to formally recognize the Armenian Genocide, framing this acknowledgment as a moral and historical duty.
Spearheaded by the Ottoman Empire's Committee of Union and Progress, the 1915 campaign resulted in approximately 1.5 million deaths through forced labor and death marches toward the Syrian desert.
While 32 countries have formally recognized the genocide, Israel has historically hesitated due to fluctuating strategic ties with Turkey; the draft resolution condemns state-backed campaigns to deny these events.
If the government approves the measure at the upcoming meeting, the resolution will move to the Knesset for a vote, representing a shift prioritizing historical memory over diplomatic friction with Ankara.
Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote two years ago that Turkey committed a Holocaust against the Armenians, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed recognition last year, signaling gradual policy evolution.