The Israeli government recognized Sunday the Armenian genocide, a move analysts believe was driven less by a historical reckoning and more by escalating tensions with Turkey, in particular with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The decision passed unanimously.

On Thursday, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar announced, “On the basis of its moral and historical obligation, Israel shall recognize the genocide perpetrated against the Armenian people toward the end of the Ottoman Empire.” He added that “the denial, minimization or distortion of the historical truth of these events” must be condemned.

During 1915–16, some 600,000 to 1.5 million Armenians in Ottoman territory died amid World War I in death marches to the Syrian desert. Many others were forced to convert to Islam. Many Western governments and scholars recognize the killings as genocide, while Ankara rejects that characterization, arguing that the deaths resulted from war, disease, and famine rather than a deliberate extermination campaign.

To become an official Israeli position, however, the government must submit it to the Knesset for a vote, a step Saar did not indicate is currently being considered.