Turkey recalls ambassador to Austria over genocide remarks

Turkey says it is recalling its ambassador to Austria after parties represented in parliament signed a declaration recognising the massacre of Armenians a century ago as genocide.
A Foreign Ministry statement yesterday protested against the move, saying Austria had no right to "accuse the Turkish people of a crime."
It said ambassador Hasan Gogus was being recalled to Ankara for consultations.
Historians estimate that up to 1.5 million Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks, an event widely viewed by scholars as the first genocide of the 20th century. Turkey denies that the deaths constituted genocide and has been lobbying to prevent countries from recognising them as such.

Earlier this month, Turkey recalled its ambassador to the Vatican after Pope Francis described the killings as genocide.