WHITE HOUSE OFFERS CONDOLENCES ON ANNIVERSARY OF ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

Agence France Presse — English
April 24, 2006 Monday 10:59 PM GMT

WASHINGTON, April 24 2006

US President George W. Bush on Monday remembered the exile and killing
beginning 91 years ago of some 1.5 million Armenians as “one of the
horrible tragedies of the 20th century.”

“This was a tragedy for all humanity and one that we and the world
must never forget,” the US president said in a statement released by
the White House.

“We mourn this terrible chapter of history and recognize that it
remains a source of pain for people in Armenia and for all those who
believe in freedom, tolerance, and the dignity and value of every
human life,” Bush said.

His remarks came on the 91st anniversary of what is considered the
beginning of the genocide carried out under the Ottoman empire.

Armenians claim some 1.5 million people died in the waning years of
the empire, from 1915-1922, while Turkey, which refused to recognize
the killings as genocide, puts the death toll at between 300,000
and 500,000.

Bush called for continued dialogue and “shared understading” between
the two sides, praising “the individuals in Armenia and Turkey who
have sought to examine the historical events of this time with honesty
and sensitivity.”

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress