Barack Obama bars U.S. entry to Genocide suspectsAugust 6, 2011 - 14:46 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - U.S. President Barack Obama ordered new measures to boost the U.S. ability to stop mass atrocities such as genocide and bar perpetrators of war crimes from entering the United States. The order sets up an Atrocity Prevention Board of government agencies to coordinate responses to such events within the administration. Obama noted in a statement that 66 years after the Holocaust and 17 years after the genocide in Rwanda the United States still lacked a "comprehensive policy framework" for stopping large-scale atrocities. Obama directed his administration to study a range of economic, diplomatic and other actions that can be taken in such cases. The U.S. president cited the likelihood of the mass slaughter of civilians in Benghazi, Libya, in March when the United States joined NATO's military action. In recent weeks, he has been criticized for not doing more to stop Syria's killing of unarmed protesters which, while it falls short of genocide, has intensified in recent days. Through a presidential proclamation, Obama also expanded the grounds for denying entry into the United States to include a larger number of human rights violators such as those who commit "war crimes and crimes against humanity", Reuters reported. As a candidate for President, Obama repeatedly vowed to recognize the Armenian Genocide once in office, vowing "a principled commitment to commemorating and ending genocide." But since 2009, Obama has declined to use the word in the face of furious resistance from Turkey, a key NATO ally. The Armenian Genocide The Armenian Genocide (1915-23) was the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I. It was characterized by massacres and deportations, involving forced marches under conditions designed to lead to the death of the deportees, with the total number of deaths reaching 1.5 million. Top stories Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrived in Moscow on April 22 to hold talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". Partner news | Pashinyan’s spokesperson denies intention to visit Baku for COP29 Pashinyan’s agenda doesn’t include a trip to Baku for the COP29 conference, his press secretary Nazeli Baghdasaryan has said. Lithuania sending €100,000 to help Armenia fight floods consequences Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan took to social media to thank his Lithuanian counterpart for the contribution. Armenia: Rescue workers restore pedestrian bridge for flood-hit community Rescue workers on Wednesday, June 5 restored a pedestrian bridge in the town of Alaverdi in Armenia’s north. Turkey condemns Uruguay’s recognition of Armenian Genocide Turkey has condemned a newly passed law in Uruguay that recognizes the Armenian Genocide, TRT reports. |