Turkey on Wednesday rejected remarks by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which he recognized the genocide carried out by the Ottoman Empire against Armenians, Assyrians and Greeks in the early 20th century.
“Netanyahu’s remarks concerning the events of 1915 are an attempt to exploit past tragedies for political motives,” Ankara’s foreign ministry wrote in a Turkish-language statement, saying, “We condemn and reject this statement, which is incompatible with historical and legal facts.”
On Tuesday, Netanyahu was asked by Patrick Bet-David on his podcast why Israel doesn’t recognize the Armenian genocide.
Netanyahu first said, incorrectly, “I think we have. I think the Knesset passed a resolution to that effect.”
No such legislation has been passed into law. A 2018 bill that would have done so was withdrawn due to lack of support from a previous government led by Netanyahu.
Bet-David then said, “I don’t know if it’s come from you, though. I don’t know if it’s come from the prime minister of Israel,” leading Netanyahu to respond, “I just did. Here you go.”
Israel has previously refrained from recognizing the genocide over fears it could harm its relationship with Turkey — the successor state to the Ottoman Empire — which hotly denies any such genocide occurred.
Starting with Uruguay in 1965, nations including France, Germany, Canada, Russia and the United States have recognized the Armenian genocide.
In 2021, after Joe Biden became the first US president to recognize the genocide, Israel’s Foreign Ministry said it recognized the “terrible suffering and tragedy of the Armenian people,” but stopped short of recognizing the genocide.
At the time, Yair Lapid, who is now leader of the opposition, said he would “continue to fight for Israeli recognition of the Armenian Genocide,” calling it “our moral responsibility as the Jewish state.”
Since then, in particular following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, massacre in Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza, Turkish-Israeli ties have deteriorated sharply. In May 2024, Turkey suspended all trade with Israel, and last week, reportedly acted to ban the movement of Turkish ships to Israel.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly accused Israel of committing genocide in its war against Hamas in Gaza, and has compared it to Nazi Germany.
In its statement on Wednesday, Turkey repeated its accusation that Israel is carrying out a genocide, saying, “Netanyahu, who is on trial for his role in the genocide committed against the Palestinian people, is attempting to cover up the crimes committed by himself and his government.”
Netanyahu is not currently on trial on such a charge. The International Criminal Court has issued arrest warrants for him and former defense minister Yoav Gallant over alleged crimes against humanity and war crimes in Israel’s war in Gaza — including using starvation as a method of warfare.
Israel has adamantly rejected those charges, as well as the charge of genocide in Gaza, saying it makes efforts to avoid civilian casualties in Gaza and accusing Hamas of embedding itself among noncombatant populations.