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The horrific tragedies of World War I were not just confined to the fields of battle…

The horrific tragedies of World War I were not just confined to the fields of battle…. Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?. Why is it a crime for one man to kill another, but not a crime of an oppressor to kill more than a million men?.

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The horrific tragedies of World War I were not just confined to the fields of battle…

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  1. The horrific tragedies of World War I were not just confined to the fields of battle… Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?

  2. Why is it a crime for one man to kill another, but not a crime of an oppressor to kill more than a million men? • SoghomonTehlirian assassinates Talat Pasha in Germany. • 3/15/21 • He is tried for murder but is found not guilty.

  3. Historically, the Armenians repeatedly asked for reforms of equality in the empire.

  4. Repressive Violence in 1890s • A weak gov’t trying to establish law & order in local areas. • Begins to create a culture of violence. • 1894-1896: approx. 200,000 Armenians killed.

  5. 1908 – Young Turks Movement • Military Coup ousts the Sultan. • Initial talks begin to actually bring reform. • Turning Point: Greece, Serbia, Bulgaria victorious vs. Ottoman Army (Humiliating) • Ottomans lose 75% of their European territories • Turkish Nationalism runs wild against minorities.

  6. Young Turks Coalition Government - 1913 • Talat – Minister of the Interior • Enver – Minister of Defense • Djemal – Minister of the Navy • Committee of Union + Progress • “Turkey for Turks” starts in schools

  7. “Our Armenian countrymen have attempted to destroy the peace and security of the Ottoman State.” • Turks choose to join Central Powers to gain land in Russia during WWI. • Turks are SOUNDLY defeated. • Rumors of Armenians aiding Russians. • Armenians in Turkish Army are stripped of weapons and forced into hard labor. • 250 Armenian intellectuals are arrested, killed, tortured.

  8. Public Declaration for “safety” • Armenians must leave within 5 days of proclamation • Permission to carry light property only • Camps have been prepared…

  9. Deportation Begins • Most marched out of towns on foot. • No rest or drink as they marched through desert. • Bodies thrown into Euphrates River, others jumped into river to drown. • Some were deported by train but were forced to pay a fare. • Killing squads formed, civilians joined in.

  10. 1.5 Million Armenians Killed

  11. Relief is slow; Jurisdiction is questioned • N.Y. Times write 146 articles about the Armenians in 1915. • 4 U.S. consuls in Turkey wrote letters to U.S. gov’t reporting what they witnessed. • Near East Relief Foundations raised $100 million in aid ($1.3 Billion in today’s currency). • 4000 pages of testimony in U.S. archives

  12. Why are you so interested? You are not Christian…what have you to complain? Why can’t you let us do with these Christians as we please?Talaat to Henry Morgenthau, Sr.

  13. Turkish Government adamantly denies that a genocide occurred • 1919 – Britain pressures Turks to hold trials for crimes committed. • Talat, Enver, Djemal all sentenced to death in absentia by Turkish military court. • 1923 – New Turkish Government distances themselves from tragedy. • Turks become EXTREMELY Westernized and are courted by G.B., France, Germany

  14. The responsibility for these acts falls first upon the deported people themselves…

  15. I confess that the deportation was not carried out lawfully everywhere…some of the officials abused their authority…and took measures into their own hands… • Turkish Gov’t look at event as a civil war. • Claims that only Armenians in the East were killed. • Starvation occurred due to war rations. • Claim that just as many Muslim Turks were killed. • Afraid of compensation/comparisons to Hitler. • Very protective and defensive when any country moves to address event as “genocide”. • Turkish schools include curriculum that refutes Armenian atrocities. • 1975-1985: Armenian terrorists attempt several assassinations on Turkish officials.

  16. The Armenian Genocide is not to be forgotten • The monuments to the right is located in Yerevan, Armenia • Another memorial is located in Syria.

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