Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar announced on Thursday night that he will propose a resolution in the next Cabinet meeting to officially recognize the Armenian Genocide.
“Recognizing the genocide perpetrated against the Armenian people in the final years of the Ottoman Empire is both a moral and historical duty,” he wrote on X.
“We must also firmly condemn any denial, minimization, or distortion of the historical truth. The resolution will subsequently be brought before the Knesset for a vote,” added Israel’s top diplomat.
I will bring before the Israeli government at its next meeting a proposed resolution for the official recognition by the Government of Israel of the Armenian Genocide.
— Gideon Sa'ar | גדעון סער (@gidonsaar) June 25, 2026
Recognizing the genocide perpetrated against the Armenian people in the final years of the Ottoman Empire is…
Israel’s next Cabinet meeting is scheduled for June 28.
Israeli relations with Turkey have taken a nosedive ever since Recep Tayyip Erdoğan assumed the presidency in 2014. The Turkish leader has repeatedly expressed vehement anti-Israel views and has prohibited commercial ties with the Jewish state.
During World War I, the Ottoman Empire killed roughly 1 million Armenians through mass deportations and death marches into the Syrian Desert, while forcibly converting others to Islam.
To date, 34 countries, including the United States and Greece, have formally recognized the Armenian Genocide. Israel would be the 35th.
Sa’ar’s proposal comes on the backdrop of growing Turkish influence in the region and the U.S. administration weighing an arms delivery to Ankara that could enhance its air force stealth capabilities.
U.S. President Donald Trump hinted on Wednesday that Washington is looking to move ahead with the sale of military equipment to Turkey.
