Why did the Armenian Genocide Happen?

The Armenian genocide is widely recognized as one of the first modern genocides, and it began in the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

The Ottoman Empire, which was ruled by a Muslim government, saw the Armenian Christian minority as a threat, particularly because many Armenians had become successful merchants and professionals.

In addition, some Ottoman leaders believed that Armenians were cooperating with Russia, which was an enemy of the Ottoman Empire during World War I.

These factors, combined with long-standing prejudices and tensions between the two groups, led to the government’s decision to eliminate the Armenian population.

Starting in 1915, Armenian men, women, and children were systematically rounded up, deported, and massacred. Many were subjected to forced marches, starvation, and other forms of torture and abuse.

The Ottoman government denied that the massacres constituted genocide and claimed that the Armenians had been relocated for their own safety.

However, the overwhelming evidence suggests that the Armenian genocide was a deliberate and premeditated campaign to eliminate the Armenian population from the Ottoman Empire. The exact number of Armenians who died as a result of the genocide is a subject of debate, but estimates range from 1 million to 1.5 million.