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  • Pope Francis

    POPE FRANCIS

    CTV Television, Inc., Canada
    April 12, 2015 Sunday
    SHOW: CTV NATIONAL NEWS 23:00:00 ET

    ANCHORS: SANDIE RINALDO

    SANDIE RINALDO: Well it only took one word for Pope Francis to find
    himself at the center of a diplomatic storm today. The word, genocide,
    and Francis used it to describe the slaughter of 1.5 million Armenians
    by the Ottoman Turks in 1915. No one disputes the deaths, but Turkey
    strongly denies committing a crime. CTV's Melanie Nagy explains.

    MELANIE NAGY (Reporter): In St. Peter's Basilica during mass, Pope
    Francis used the word genocide in reference to the Armenians who were
    murdered by Ottoman Turks 100 years ago. A powerful statement made
    in the presence of Armenia's president and several of the country's
    spiritual leaders. But it was also a controversial move, one that's
    angered Turkey. Around the time of World War I, up to 1.5 million
    Armenians were killed in what's now eastern Turkey.

    ARAM I (Head of the Armenian Apostolic Church): Genocide is a crime
    against humanity.

    NAGY: But Turkey has long insisted those killed were the victims
    of civil war, not genocide. From Istanbul, Turkey's prime minister
    lashed out, accusing the pontiff of inciting hatred.

    ROBERT RIGGS (Religious Historian): The Turkish government is fighting
    back against this because of its, you know, again legal, potential
    legal consequences in the international court.

    NAGY: This isn't the first time a pope has referred to the Armenian
    killings as genocide. In 2001, John Paul II used the term in
    a declaration. But Francis went much further, publicly using the
    word in front of a large audience. In Toronto, Armenian-Canadians
    held a blood drive to mark the upcoming 100th anniversary of the
    massacre. They applaud the pope's comments.

    ARMEN YEGANIAN (Armenian Ambassador to Canada): We have to address
    the issue. We have to learn our lessons in order to learn how to
    prevent it.

    NAGY: Also today, a spokesperson for the prime minister's office
    reiterated Canada's position referring to the events as a genocide. As
    for Turkey, the country is now recalled its ambassador to the Vatican.

    Sandie?

    RINALDO: CTV's Melanie Nagy in Vancouver.


    From: Baghdasarian
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