Israel’s decision to formally recognize the Armenian Genocide triggered a furious response from Turkey on Sunday, with Ankara accusing Israel of exploiting history for political purposes and attempting to divert attention from the ongoing war in Gaza.

The dispute erupted after Israel’s Cabinet unanimously approved a resolution recognizing the mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during World War I as genocide. Turkish officials swiftly condemned the move, dismissing it as a politically motivated maneuver.

In a sharply worded statement, Turkey’s Foreign Ministry alleged that Israel was using the recognition to distract the world from its military campaign in Gaza.

“The Israeli government, which has systematically persecuted the Palestinian people before the eyes of the entire world and is being tried at the International Court of Justice on charges of committing genocide against the people of Gaza, is seeking to cover up its own crimes through the political decision it has adopted regarding the events of 1915,” the Ministry said, as quoted by AFP.

“Turkey will continue to work resolutely to bring an end to Israel’s expansionist and destabilizing policies in the region,” the statement added.

Turkey, which succeeded the Ottoman Empire, has long rejected the characterization of the 1915 killings, forced deportations, and imprisonment of Armenians as genocide, maintaining that the historical events should not be described by that term.

Israel’s latest move follows a significant shift that began last August, when Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu publicly recognized the Armenian Genocide for the first time. Ankara angrily rejected those remarks at the time, insisting they were politically driven and lacked historical basis.

The question of officially labeling the atrocities as genocide has long been diplomatically sensitive. For years, the United States avoided using the term out of concern for its strategic relationship with Turkey. That changed in 2021, when President Joe Biden formally referred to the Ottoman Empire’s actions against Armenians as “genocide,” prompting a fierce backlash from the Turkish government.

Sunday’s announcement also comes against the backdrop of steadily worsening relations between Israel and Turkey. Although the two countries appeared close to restoring ties shortly before Hamas’ October 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel, relations have sharply deteriorated since then, with Turkish leaders—led by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan—repeatedly launching harsh attacks against Israel.

Among the most pointed exchanges came in March of last year, when Erdogan denounced Israel as a “terror state” following Israeli strikes against terrorist targets in Gaza.

Months later, Erdogan escalated his criticism further, asserting that Netanyahu’s government posed the greatest threat to stability and security throughout the Middle East.

{Matzav.com}