Pope was at first told in Rome the term genocide was offensiveJune 27, 2016 - 12:02 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Pope Francis on Sunday, June 26 said that he knew no word to describe the annihilation of Armenians other than "genocide" until he was elected as the head of the Roman Catholic Church. On his way back from a three-day-visit to Armenia, the pope was asked about his U-turn decision to pronounce the term genocide during a reception with Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, RIA reports. “When referring to the destruction of the Armenian people, we used the term genocide in Argentina and installed a khachkar at the Buenos Aires Cathedral to commemorate the Armenian Genocide,” Francis said. “Arriving in Rome, I heard the expression “the great evil” and was told that the term genocide was offensive. But I have always cited the three major genocides of the 20th century: The Armenian Genocide, that of Hitler and Stalin’s genocide.” “When I was preparing for the holy mass last year (on April 12 when Francis commemorated the centennial of the Armenian Genocide – PAN), I found out that Saint John Paul II had earlier used that word and decided to cite him,” the pontiff said. “It was not greeted well, with Turkey denouncing my decision and recalling its ambassador to the Vatican who, however, returned several months later.” “I hadn’t initially included that word in my speech during a visit to the country, by after hearing the tone of the Armenian President's speech, it would sound very strange if I did not repeat what I said a year ago,” he added. Francis spent three days in Armenia from June 24 to June 26. Top stories Six total incidents have burned 19 old-growth trees. Friday night 8 trees were torched along the beautiful main entrance. The EU does not intend to conduct military exercises with Armenia, Lead Spokesperson for EU Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Peter Stano says. Hikmet Hajiyev has said that there is no place for USAID operation in Azerbaijan any longer. A telephone conversation between Putin and Pashinyan before the CSTO summit is not planned, Peskov says. Partner news | Czech-Armenian military cooperation discussed in Yerevan A delegation led by the Director General for the Industrial Cooperation Division of the Ministry of Defence of the Czech Republic visited Armenia. Ex-Karabakh leader moved to solitary confinement cell in Baku, his son says David Vardanyan is the son of former Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan who who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan. Freedom House concerned by mounting reports of police violence in Armenia Freedom House urged Armenian authorities to investigate this pattern of excessive force and inhumane treatment. CSTO recognizes Armenia’s sovereign right to withdraw Tasmagambetov has said that if Armenia decides to leave the organization, “it will be the sovereign right of Armenia.” |