A Turkish historian conducting studies into Armenian Genocide archives has exposed new findings throwing light on the Ottoman-era massacres. Tert.am reports.
Edhem Eldem, whose recent research focused on the 1896 Occupation of the Ottoman Bank, said the operation traced its roots back to a much earlier period, covering different phases of history.
“The political developments and confrontations, which followed the 1878 Congress of Berlin to determine the fate of the Armenian population in the Ottoman Empire and the eastern [i.e. Western Armenian] villayets, can be treated as the initial phases. One the one hand, the Armenians nourished hope to enjoy equal rights, sovereignty and even independence, and on the other hand, there was the state’s growing counteraction, and quests for a solution,” he said in comments to the Istanbul-Armenian publication Agos.
The second stage saw all that receive tougher and more forceful reactions, the historian added, citing the 1894 pogroms of Sasun and the political parties’ subsequent move to incite nationalist sentiments.
In his words, the Armenian armed groups intentionally targetted the Ottoman Bank, considering its importance as a state institution, as well as attempting to attract Europe (which was believed to be maintaining broad ties with the bank).
The historian notes that the Turkish media were silent on the Armenian casualties in the operations, while European and Armenian sources reported 8,000 Armenians dead. Instead, the Turkish sources claimed that hundreds of Muslims were killed in the attacks.
“Although it isn’t really easy to obtain accurate records about the number of the Armenians killed, I have tried to basically prove – relying on Ottoman sources – that it was a real massacre, and that the Turkish thesis is absolutely groundless,” he said, adding that the minimum estimates suggest 1,000 deaths.
Meantime, the historian noted that many Turkish sources admitting the fact attempted to simultaneously mitigate their state’s responsibility.
He also addressed Sultan Abdul Hamid’s reaction to the incident and the massacres which followed.
“Was the 1896 brutal killing of at least 1,000 people in broad daylight possible, and if yes, what does all that virtually mean? At the heart of Istanbul where even birds could not fly by the Sultan’s Palace, how can we possibly accept the silence on such violence against the Armenians in [central] districts like Galatay, Beshiktash, Uskudar and Beyoglu?” the historian noted.
He added that he is more inclined to believe that Sultan Abdul Hamid did not want rather than was unable to prevent the massive killing of the Armenians.
