Israeli parliament rejects ‘Armenian genocide' resolution
The Israeli parliament, the Knesset, declined yesterday to approve a resolution recognizing Armenian claims of genocide at the hands of the late Ottoman Empire, news reports said. The resolution, submitted by lawmaker Haim Oron, drew anger from some quarters in the Israeli government and was rejected by parliament, the Anatolia news agency said. "It is the duty of the Israeli parliament, as the representative of the Jewish people, to express its opinion on the need to recognize the Armenian genocide," Oron, who is from the opposition left-wing Meretz Party, was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse. "It is a debt we owe to the Armenian people and one we owe to ourselves."
Government spokeswoman Miri Eisin said that Israel "did not intend to place itself at the forefront of this issue, which is being handled by the international community." Israel has close diplomatic ties with Turkey -- one of the few Muslim countries with which it has relations -- and has in the past steered clear of the recognition issue.
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