Armenia

History / Background: The roots of the conflict date back to the late 18th century. Inspired by the French Revolution, Armenian nationalists slowly began to demand greater autonomy, becoming a highly politicized religious minority within the Ottoman Empire. This politicization resulted in a series of massacres by the Ottoman Sultan from 1894 to 1896 in which some 200,000 Armenians perished. After the turn of the century, an uprising by a group known as the Young Turks took over the Ottoman Empire, who continued to harass and discriminate against the Christian Armenians. In 1909, another massacre of Armenians took place in the town of Adana. The Ottoman’s genocidal momentum intensified due to the lack of international concern and the outbreak of World War I , which then gave them cause and the cover to further harm the Armenians.

 

Dynamics of the Genocide: The genocide took place in four stages. Beginning in early 1915, the first stage targeted all able-bodied men between ages 20-45, who were recruited into the army to serve as laborers . Many were later executed. In the next stage, which began in April 1915, prominent figures in the community, including political leaders, intellectuals, and priests, were rounded up and deported to central Iran or executed. In May the Ottomans deported the remaining Armenian population, claiming that they were being resettled in the deserts of Mesopotamia. In the fourth stage, additional massacres were ordered to eliminate the remnants of the uprooted population. Up to 1.5 million people out of a prewar population of 1.8 million died as the result of the massacres and deportations. An alleged 100,000 Armenian women were forced to convert to Islam. The Allied powers made empty promises to both investigate and prosecute all crimes committed against the Armenians. The government of the newly formed Republic of Turkey allowed the military to conduct a series of court-marshal s of governmental officials between 1919 and 1921. In 1939, Hitler infamously said, “Who, after all, speaks today of the annihilation of the Armenians?” Today, the Turkish government still fails to acknowledge the extent of the massacres, and debate about whether or not they constitute genocide continues around the world.