Genocide is recognised

THE French parliament, in a vote which drew condemnation from Turkey and praise from Armenia, passed a Bill yesterday recognising the 1915 killings of Armenians by Turks as genocide.

Turkey had warned that relations with France would suffer and asked the Socialist-led government to intervene to stop the Bill. France has one of the largest Armenian communities in Europe - 300,000 strong - most of whom are descendants of survivors of the 1915 killings, in which, they say, 1.5 million of their compatriots died.

- Reuters, Paris