Kurdish Genocide

Between the years of 1915 and 1918 the Ottoman Empire, under the Young Turks began a deliberate program of removing and exterminating the Armenian population; a population already dismantled through previous massacres. The Armenians were a minority in both population and religion. Because most Armenians were Christians, they were made an easy scapegoat in an empire that was mostly Islamic. With the world’s eyes on the First World War, the Armenian Genocide went mostly unnoticed and there were no punishments such as ones received by Germany after the Holocaust. The United States has deliberately avoided the recognition of the Armenian Genocide of 1915 in order to maintain an ally in the Middle East and to avoid American genocidal policies,

Unlike the other three scholars, who all look to prove intent in the event of the Hamidian Massacres, Suny takes a different approach in his book that contrasts greatly to Ackam, Dadrian, and Bloxham. Suny challenges the idea that the Hamidian Massacres were the start of the Armenian Genocide and announces that “on closer examination the Hamidian Massacres we not genocidal, but a kind of “‘exemplary repression,’ demonstrating to the sultan's subjects what the consequences of resistance and rebellion would be” (Suny, 131). The massacres showed no intent to eliminate the Armenians, unlike the genocide of 1915. Comparing the Hamidian Massacres to those of the past and to the genocide soon to be committed Suny brings a new perspective to when intent actually began against the Armenians, which may lead to questioning the claims put forth by his fellow

The year 1918 brought the simultaneous culmination of both World War One and the Armenian Genocide. With Ottoman defeat and the collapse of the CUP dictatorship, the Allied Powers saw an opportunity to execute punishment and assist the rehabilitation of Armenian survivors. Despite the trial and death sentencing of several organizers of the genocide, no stable attempt was made to properly take the Turkish Government to court and press charges against this crime against humanity. Thousands of culprits were left free to remain in office and within a few months the judicial proceedings were adjourned and prisoners of war were free to be sent home. After WWI, finding the path to world peace distracted the Allies. Organizations were formed, treaties

The actions made by the Ottoman Empire during the World War one were a contribution and establishment of a genocide. The Armenian genocide resulted in 1.5 million deaths of Armenians that were caused by starvation, exhaustion, dehydration, and mainly from being slaughtered. " The decision to carry out a genocide against the Armenian people was made by the political party in power in the Ottoman Empire" (Full of Facts: Armenian Genocide). Since the Committee of Union and Progress came to a conclusion to organize this event, it proves that the decrease in the Armenian population was intentional.

Rather than fix the numerous problems, the KRG leaders utilize false rhetoric and fictitious scenarios to distract the Kurdish citizens from the struggles of their daily lives. Accordingly, the American public must employ its democratic power to compel the United States into using fiery propaganda and military strength to unite the Kurds and overthrow the KRG leaders. With the completion of the coup and the current officials replaced with active problem-solvers, the Kurds can fulfill their desire: a pillar of strength in a land of

The denial of the Armenian genocide and the use of the term “alleged” are insults to those who have agitated over the years in highlighting the genocide and the Armenian people themselves. The pictorial anger and anguish of this painful traumatic experience had left the survivors of this horrific event with deep scars beyond repairs. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries were a dark world for the Armenians who were held helpless and bound at the treacherous hand of the Muslim Turks of the Ottoman Empire in Turkey. The Armenian Genocide includes: the context of power of the Ottoman Empire, the phases of destruction and Turkey’s refusal to acknowledge the genocide and provide support to the Armenians.

When the French National Assembly declared it a crime to deny the mass killings of Armenians, Turkish leaders and their supporters began a new form of

Along with the allegations of recent genocide in Iraq, the Yezidi diaspora is spreading beyond ancestral lands to European countries such as Sweden and Germany. It is in the acceptance of political asylum seekers and legally designated refugees by these European powers that we see human rights observances in action from able actors (these states are capable of ensuring rights protections for these displaced community and thus have agreed to accept the responsibility in compliance with international human rights obligations). Thus the diaspora in Europe demonstrates how regional instability can be

Initially, the term genocide covered national, racial, ethnic and religious groups as the only groups protected by genocide convention (Naimark 41). However, many scholars have debated to consider and include other groups that may help to liberate the people from the poor governance and threat from autocratic leadership of any given society such as political, cultural, economic, ideological and social groups. These groups play a vital role in promoting cultural and social values of people and cannot be undermined. It is, therefore, logical to respect and protect any attempt to destroy them. On the other hand, political groups are indeed essential to promoting democracy in the country. They discourage and condemn corrupt practices and exploitation of citizens by their leaders. Hence, these groups need protection as they play a prominent role in the society. This is because selfish political leaders may attack

I decided to do my paper on the terrorist organization named “Kurdistan Workers’ party” from what I have read about them they are a very interesting group, but violent. The main reason for their attacks is to form a Kurdistan state within Turkey. Some people apart of this organization feel that Turkey has oppressed their culture. They want to fight Turkish officials to prove their point. The group was started by Abdullah Ocalan, a man who believes in Marxist-lenist ideas. Abdullah now resides in a Turkish prison but still has control over what the PKK (Kurdish workers’ party) does.

To better understand the atrocities of these wars, one must have knowledge of the definitions of certain terms and war crimes. The ideas of “ethnic cleansing” and “genocide” are often thrown

Turkey has been a key player against the PKK. Geography, politics and history have conspired to render 30 million Kurds the largest stateless people in the Middle East. The Government of Turkey has long denied the Kurdish population, located largely in the southeast, basic political, cultural, and linguistic rights. The government of Turkey has in turn waged an intense campaign to suppress PKK terrorism, targeting active PKK units as well as persons they believe support or sympathize with the PKK. As part of its fight against the PKK, the Government forcibly displaced noncombatants, failed to resolve extra judicial killings, tortured civilians, and abridged freedom of expression. The Turkish government has also managed to burn over 4,000 villages forcing Kurds to flee from their homeland. Finally, the Turkish government estimates that the conflict with the PKK has exacted a high financial drain on the

Other literature, such as Saxton’s article testing Gurr’s Model of Ethnopolitical Rebellion, shows that the results of repression of ethnic minorities can lead to grievances, rebellion, mass mobilization, and possibly more repression. The problem here is that the article looks at the repressed’s actions in the face of repression, much like White and Hewitt. While Saxton differs in scope, as his testing of Gurr’s model can provide a way of identifying possible results of repression on an ethnic minority through a theoretical model not relying on case studies, it is a model that would most likely only work with longer term cases of

On 25 September 2017, an independence referendum was held for Iraqi Kurdistan. The results were overwhelming with 93 percent of votes in favor of independence. This referendum raised tensions between the Kurdistan Regional Government and the Government of Iraq and Iraqi Federal Forces which launched attacks on Kurdish territories (Peçanha, 2017). In mid-October, the disputed city of Kirkuk was retaken from the Kurds (Dubin, 2017). Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has threatened to shut down their border with the Kurdistan Regional Government and Iraqi and Turkish forces held military exercises on their border. Iran is planning their own military exercises with the Iraqi military and closed its airspace to Iraqi

The Kurds mostly live throughout Iran, Turkey and Iraq. Also, some of them can be found living in Syria, Russia, Lebanon and Germany. Kurdish intellectuals live in exile in European countries such as France, Sweden etc. (1 pg.1). In 1975, the Kurds made up 19 percent of Turkey’s population with a total number of 7,500,000 people. They had a population of 2,500,000 people in Iraq which made 23 percent of the country’s population. In Iran, the Kurdish people made up 10 percent of Iran’s population consisting of 3,500,000. In addition, the Kurds were a part of 8.5 percent of Syria’s population with 500,000 people (1 pg. 4). Moreover, in 1991, the Kurds maintained 19 percent of Turkey’s population with an increased population of 10,800,000 people. Their numbers increased in Iraq with a population of 4,100,000 people upholding their 23 percentile. The Kurdish people increased in numbers and made up 23 percent of Iran’s population with a number of 5,500,000. Their population consisted of 1,000,000 in Syria making up 8 percent of their populace (1 pg. 4). Therefore, one can draw the conclusion that the Kurds are in large