On Thurs., March 4, the House Foreign Affairs Committee held a hearing on the Armenian Genocide Resolution. The resolution passed by a vote of 23 to 22. The resolution will now be sent to the House of Representatives for a vote by the full chamber at a date to be set by the Speaker of the House.
In his introductory remarks, Howard L. Berman (D-Calif.), the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, underlined the undisputed fact of the Armenian Genocide, noted that the overwhelming majority of scholars affirm the fact of the genocide, and urged his colleagues for vote for it. He added, “It is now time for Turkey to acknowledge the reality of the Armenian Genocide.”

Turkey says it is recalling its ambassador to the U.S. for consultations following a resolution declaring the killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks around the time of World War I as genocide, reported AP. The move came minutes after the U.S. congressional panel approved the resolution Thursday. A government statement said Ambassador Namik Tan was being recalled with immediate effect. The House Foreign Affairs Committee endorsed the resolution with a 23-22 vote, even though the Obama Administration had urged Congress not to offend Turkey by approving it.

A bi-partisan majority today rejected Turkey’s gag rule, setting the stage for Speaker Pelosi and the full U.S. House to properly commemorate the Armenian Genocide. The Committee’s message was simple yet powerful: Turkey doesn’t get a vote or a veto in the U.S. Congress.

As Americans of Armenian heritage, it holds great meaning to see our nation move one step closer to putting the painful lessons of the Armenian Genocide to work in helping to end the cycle of genocide, in Darfur and around the world.