Why Did The Armenian Genocide Start

April 24, 1925. A date seemingly unimportant for many, but for the Armenian people, it was the start of something unspeakable. On this date, the event called the Armenian Genocide had begun, and for millions of people who had called themselves Armenian, faced a great atrocity toward their race. Why did the genocide start? How were 1.5 million people killed? It all started with the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman empire was in decline and so, a group called the Young Turks came into power. These leaders were powerful and tried to unify and strengthen the massive empire that they had. Then came World War I. Turkey had sided with Germany during the war when they had tried to capture the city of Baku, in Azerbaijan, they had suffered massive losses.

According to an article on History.com, a website known for historical accuracy current events states, “After that, ordinary Armenians were turned out of their homes and sent on death marches through the Mesopotamian desert without food or water. Frequently, the marchers were stripped naked and forced to walk under the scorching sun until they dropped dead. People who stopped to rest were shot.”(History.com). As mentioned in the article, it clearly states how the Armenian people were selected and forced to complete these objectives. This also bears some similarity to the Holocaust, where Jewish people were forced out of their homes and into concentration camps but the major difference, like stated before, is that this genocide had occurred decades before. The fact that people were sent on death marches through a desert as well as they committed some really inhumane actions. It also clearly shows the resemblance to the idea that this was in fact a true genocide. Another example of the actions that the Young Turks had done to the Armenians that make this killing a genocide is the use of concentration/labour camps. In an article by Robbie Gennet titled, Why the Armenian Genocide Matters, states; “ the widespread massacres and deportations of Armenians in 1915- which included the use of 25 major concentration camps, forced marches, mass burnings, drownings, and gassings- were in every way a genocide by the Turks against the Armenians”(Gennet). 25 different concentration camps. Those are only the major ones as well. The use of these concentration camps should already signify the notion that a genocide is taking place in that region, yet still Turkey continues to deny the fact that there was even a genocide. This then brings us to the next point, why isn’t Turkey still acknowledging that they had committed a genocide and what they could gain if they