The Israeli coalition cabinet led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided on the 28th (local time) to officially recognize the Armenian genocide.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar said on X (formerly Twitter) after the cabinet meeting, "I express my gratitude to the cabinet ministers who unanimously voted for the resolution I introduced recognizing the Armenian genocide."
Minister Sa'ar said, "Israel has joined 32 countries that have fulfilled their moral duty to recognize historical truth and reject attempts to deny it," adding, "It is never too late to do the right thing."
Minister Sa'ar also said in a separate video statement in Hebrew that "this horrific massacre about 100 years ago, over which there is no dispute about the facts, took 1.5 million lives and destroyed a cultural heritage boasting an ancient history and tradition," the Times of Israel reported.
Minister Sa'ar did not explicitly identify Türkiye as the perpetrator of the genocide. However, the resolution is seen as provoking Türkiye in connection with the view that the former Ottoman Empire carried out a genocide of Armenians.
From 1915 to 1923, the Ottoman Empire, the predecessor of Türkiye, is known to have massacred Armenians and other minorities. An estimated 1.5 million people were killed.
Türkiye uses the term "the 1915 events" and does not acknowledge the massacre itself, saying it was the result of mutual clashes during the war. It also claims the number of Armenians who died was about 300,000.
Countries that have officially recognized the Armenian genocide include the United States, France, Germany, Russia, Argentina and Brazil, among roughly 30 nations.
Israel had avoided using the term "genocide" for this incident to steer clear of tensions with Türkiye. But after the Turkish government defended Hamas, the Palestinian militant faction that launched a surprise attack on Israel in Oct. 2023, tensions rose between the two countries, and the issue also became a subject of dispute.
In August last year, when asked in a podcast interview, "Why does Israel not recognize the genocide against Armenians?" Netanyahu effectively acknowledged the genocide by responding, "I think we did," "I just did."
On the day, Türkiye's Foreign Ministry issued a rebuttal statement titled "Regarding the decision by the Israeli government on the 1915 events."
The Turkish Foreign Ministry criticized, "While persecuting Palestinians systematically before the eyes of the world and being brought before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on charges of genocide against residents of the Gaza Strip, the Israeli government is attempting to cover up its crimes through a political decision on the 1915 events."
The Turkish Foreign Ministry also said, "This malicious attempt, which ignores legal and historical facts, shows the plight of Netanyahu and his accomplices, for whom arrest warrants have been issued in the investigation by the International Criminal Court (ICC) into crimes against Palestinians."
It added, "Türkiye will work to end Israel's expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region and to ensure, in accordance with the law, that the Netanyahu government is held accountable for crimes committed against civilians, including Palestinians."