Turkish media blast Macron's Genocide remembrance move

French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to declare April 24 as a day of Armenian Genocide remembrance has sparked a wide outrage by the Turkish media.

Most outlets have described the move as scandalous, using quotation marks to refer to the tragic events universally recognized as the 21st century's first atrocious crime against humanity.

The Turkish service of BBC was the first to report the news, reminding its audience that the “surprise decision” was part of the president’s pre-election campaign pledges. The source enumerated all the European countries that have acknowledged the Genocide, adding that the Ankara authorities insist on the “killings of numerous Turks in the wake of the 1914-1921 armed confrontations”. The nationalist opposition-run newspaper Soyuju blamed Macron for “sensational and provocative tweets” in an attempt to look like US President Donald Trump.

Most of the Turkish media outlets cited Macron’s statement calling for a renewed dialogue with Armenia, as well as the disagreements with Ankara over anti-terrorism actions, the Syrian crisis, and human rights and freedoms.

The topic made headlines on such leading websites as gazeteduvar.com.tr, haberler.com, bursahaber.com, gercekgundem.com.

Macron first announced his intention to declare April 24 as a Genocide commemoration day when he was in Armenia back in October to attend the 17th Francophonie Summit.