Turkish Conference Examines Armenian Killings
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25 September 2005 -- Scholars attending a conference on the killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks nearly a century ago say opinion in Turkey is moving toward open discussion of the issue.
The Turkish media and top government officials expressed support for the two-day conference, which started in Istanbul yesterday. But nationalist protesters disputed claims that Turks committed genocide against ethnic Armenians between 1915 and 1923.
The conference faced heavy opposition from the outset and was canceled twice -- including by an Istanbul court -- before
beginning.
Turkey denies that a genocide was carried out on Armenians as the Ottoman Empire collapsed around the time of World War I. Armenians say that some 1.5 million of their ancestors were systematically killed.
(AP)
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