News - UK’s Christian leaders call on country’s government to recognize Armenian Genocide

Christian leaders in the United Kingdom (UK) have asked the UK Government to formally recognize the deaths of Armenians during World War I as a “genocide,” Cruxnow reports, posting an article by Charles Collins. The head writer of the document was Armenian Bishop Hovakim Manukyan, but it included several Orthodox and Anglican bishops, as well as a Catholic member of the House of Lords. In a letter to UK Prime Minster Rishi Sunak, Church heads said such an official recognition is not merely symbolic “but serves as a powerful statement against atrocities and a step toward preventing future acts of genocide.” The author of the article reminds that the massacre of Armenians in by what was then the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I is formally recognized as a “genocide” by 22 countries . On April 24, Armenians worldwide commemorate the genocide, which Church leaders say profoundly impacted millions and continues to resonate in their collective memory. “The United Kingdom has always been at the forefront of defending human rights and justice on the global stage. Historical figures such as former Prime Ministers David Lloyd George and Sir Winston Churchill have openly spoken about the massacres of Armenians from 1915 to 1923, referring to them as ‘the holocausts of 1915’ and the ‘clearance of the Armenian race from Asia-Minor,’ respectively,” the letter says. “These acknowledgements from your predecessors underscore the significance of the events that transpired and the importance of formally recognising them. In recent years, the global community has made significant strides in acknowledging historical injustices, including key allies such as the United States and several European nations formally recognising the Armenian Genocide,” the Church leaders continue. The letter mentions also the events that occurred in Nagorno-Karabakh. They note that after the devastating war in Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020, Azerbaijan launched a campaign against Nagorno-Karabakh in 2023, the aim of which was to ethnically cleanse the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh. They recalled also the nine-month blockade of Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan, stressing that it was the beginning of Azerbaijan's genocidal policy in Nagorno-Karabakh. “Prime Minister, the Armenian diaspora was formed not as a result of natural migration but because our people were forced to flee their historical homeland; our people were killed, raped, sent on death marches to the Syrian deserts, and our churches and homes were burnt and totally destroyed. The same is happening now,” the statement continues. “Today, the Azerbaijani government, backed by Turkey, continues to threaten Armenia, and exerts pressure to gain control over more territories within the sovereign territory of Armenia,” the leaders told Sunak. “Such an act of recognition would not only honour the memory of those who suffered and affirm justice but would also reaffirm the UK’s commitment to upholding human rights. Recognition of the Armenian Genocide by the UK would also send a clear message to Turkey and Azerbaijan to cease their aggression against Armenia,” added the Christian leaders in the United Kingdom.