The German parliament has withstood a barrage of pressure from the Turkish government, approving a symbolic resolution that declares the 1915 massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turkish forces a ‘genocide’.

The vote was almost unanimous in supporting the resolution with just one MP voting against and another abstaining. The move was largely expected and was supported by German Chancellor Angela Merkel. However, the German leader was forced to skip the vote due to prior commitments. 

Gregor Gysi, a politician from The Left Party, who was critical of Turkey’s treatment of the Kurds who were doing an excellent job in fighting Islamic State, said that “Germany was a historical accessory”and has a duty to recognize the mass killings of Armenians in the First World War.