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Nevertheless, Sultan Abdul Hamid II and his government were firmly decided on initiating a new era of anti-Armenian policy, which had already been in place for several years in Constantinople. The weakening of the Armenian population within the borders of the Ottoman Empire was no longer limited to worsening living conditions in the Armenian provinces, but was extended to carefully planned, mass-murdering. 156

The anti-Armenian feelings expressed by government officials in St Petersburg encouraged the Ottoman government, which perceived its opportunity, no longer fearing the intervention of the Russian government, and possibly even with its assistance, to be rid of the Armenians. 157

It was only the presence of Gladstone, re-elected in 1892, at the head of the British government, which forced the Ottoman government to act cautiously. When Gladstone, at the age of 85, resigned from office in 1894, the Turks had a green light. From this moment on, Sultan Abdul Hamid II began to implement his devilish plansff. 158

The Mass Murders of 1894-1896



The prelude tot the mass murders of 1894-1896 began with the events in Sasoun. The Armenians in this mountainous region suffered more frequently from Kurdish assaults and crimes. With the creation of the Homayoun lackeys, the Kurds had been armed to the teeth. Besides the taxes which the Armenians had to pay to the government, they were also forced to pay illegal fees and taxes to the Kurdish clan leaders. 159

In 1893, the Armenians in Sasoun refused to subject themselves to this oppression, to pay illegal taxes and fees to the Kurds, as they were on the brink of ruin. They did, however, continue to pay their taxes to the collectors of the Ottoman government. The Kurds, angered by this, attacked the Armenians of Sasoun, but these courageous mountain-dwellers repelled them. 160 The Kurds subsequently called for help from the Turkish government and the Turks immediately sent an armed force to the area. These soldiers, who were led by General Zeki Pasha, joined the Kurds, occupied Sasoun and began a horrific mass slaughter (August 1894). 161 This massacre, which was the first in a long chain of crimes from 1894 to 1922, was perhaps the most terrifying one in regard to how it was carried out 162, with 3 500 out of 12,000 Armenians in Sasoun murdered. 163

With the initiative from the British government, which had been notified about the events 164 through its consul, the European major powers agreed to conduct a local investigation, to be carried out by their representatives at the Ottoman court. Despite the German government's sabotage of this investigation 165, it was conducted and the result proved the incorrectness of the statements of the Ottoman government. It also gave evidence that as soon as the Ottoman governmental forces had arrived in the area, far from trying to stop the bloodbath, they had joined the Kurds and participated in the mass slaughter of the Armenian population. 166

Paul Cambon, the French ambassador in Constantinople, wrote that the investigation of the events in Sasoun revealed "that even if it has been done because of a necessary but vague order, there is enough evidence to prove the guilt of the actions of the Ottoman Empire. Even if these conclusions are incomplete, they can without a doubt prove that the Armenian accusations are accurate." 167