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AFP: Israel Lawmakers Debate Recognising Armenia Genocide

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  • AFP: Israel Lawmakers Debate Recognising Armenia Genocide

    ISRAEL LAWMAKERS DEBATE RECOGNISING ARMENIA GENOCIDE

    Agence France Presse
    Dec 26 2011

    JERUSALEM - An Israeli parliamentary committee held a landmark
    discussion on recognising genocide in Armenia on Monday, a move likely
    to further strain already tense relations with Turkey.

    During the discussion on the "Jewish people's recognition of the
    Armenian genocide," as defined by the committee, lawmakers, historians
    and members of the local Armenian community stressed Israel's moral
    obligation to officially recognise the Armenian tragedy as a genocide.

    The committee did not, however, make any decisions or issue any
    declaration, and will meet again on the issue in the future.

    In past years, the Knesset held hearings on the subject, but only
    behind the closed doors of its foreign and defence committee.

    This was the first time such a discussion was open to the public.

    Proposals by lawmakers to hold hearings on the issue were rejected
    by governments over the years, when ties between Israel and Turkey
    were warm.

    But relations plunged into deep crisis last year when Israeli forces
    killed nine Turks in a raid on a Turkish ferry, part of an activist
    flotilla seeking to breach Israel's naval blockade of Gaza.

    In October, Turkey expelled the Israeli ambassador and axed military
    ties and defence trade. Last week, Israel cancelled completion of a
    2008 contract to sell Turkey aerial surveillance equipment.

    Committee chairman Alex Miller of the nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu --
    the party headed by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman -- said the
    discussion would focus on the "educational and academic" aspects
    of the issue, such as the correct way to address it in schools and
    universities, rather than its security and diplomatic angles.

    Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin also stressed that the issue was not
    a political one.

    "The subject has not arisen at the Knesset because things happened
    between Israel and Turkey; not because we want to exploit a political
    situation in order to settle accounts," he told the committee at the
    start of its debate.

    But a foreign ministry representative at the discussion warned of
    the repercussions an Israeli move toward recognising the Armenian
    genocide could have on the already-strained relations with Turkey.

    "Our relations with them are so fragile today, it is not right to
    push them over the red line," Irit Lillian said. "Such a recognition
    at this stage could have severe ramifications."

    Ariyeh Eldad of the right-wing National Union party, who along with
    Zehava Gal-On of the left-wing Meretz party initiated the hearing,
    said: "In the past it was wrong to bring up the issue because our
    ties with Turkey were good; now it is wrong because our ties with
    them are bad. When will the time be right?"

    Gal-On said Israel had a "moral and historic obligation" to recognise
    the genocide of a million and a half Armenians, "especially when we
    are still struggling against Holocaust denial. The Israeli educational
    system cannot silence the Armenian genocide."

    Georgette Avakian of the Armenian National Committee in Jerusalem
    was reservedly satisfied at the meeting's conclusion.

    "This was a breakthrough, since the education committee dealt with
    it," she told AFP. "But I'm disappointed that they haven't reached
    any conclusions and are putting it off" for further discussions.

    Armenians say up to 1.5 million of their kinsmen died in orchestrated
    killings during the final years of the Ottoman Empire.

    The Turkish government strongly denies this, saying 300,000 Armenians
    and as many Turks were killed in civil conflict when the Christian
    Armenians, backed by Russia, rose up against the Ottoman Empire.

    France's lower house voted last week to criminalise the denial
    of genocide in Armenia, prompting Turkey to suspend political and
    military cooperation.

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