Pope angers Turkey with genocide claim

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.

The head of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Aram I, thanked Francis for his clear condemnation.