In a formal address issued today, the Rabbinical Centre of Europe, representing Jewish communities across the European continent, has called upon Armenia’s President, Vahagn Garniki Khachaturyan, and Prime Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, to cease the use of references to the Holocaust and related terminology in their political discourse concerning the ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan.
The Rabbinical Centre expressed its concerns after senior Armenian government officials employed strong language, likening aspects of the political conflict to the Holocaust in interviews given to international media outlets. The Centre emphasized that terms such as “ghetto,” “genocide,” and “holocaust” are profoundly inappropriate in any political disagreement.
The Holocaust, during World War II, marked one of the darkest chapters in human history, where Jewish people faced relentless persecution, murder, and unimaginable atrocities, including being burned, tortured, drowned, and buried alive. It was a widespread tragedy that spanned across the European continent, involving the cooperation of multiple nations.
In their letter to President Khachaturyan and Prime Minister Pashinyan, the Rabbinical Centre of Europe urged the Armenian leadership to unequivocally acknowledge the immense suffering endured by the Jewish people during the Holocaust. They emphasized that minimizing or belittling the Holocaust’s extent for political gain is both morally and historically indefensible.
The Rabbinical Centre’s message calls for an immediate cessation of the use of Holocaust-related phrases and terminology in Armenian political discourse. The Centre hopes that this message will be heeded by all relevant public bodies representing the Armenian people.
The Centre’s appeal underlines the importance of respectful and sensitive language in the context of political disagreements, particularly when referencing events as historically significant and devastating as the Holocaust.
