Turkey calls back ambassador to Canada over Armenian genocide reference

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
stephen harper 248 88 ap (photo credit: AP)
stephen harper 248 88 ap
(photo credit: AP)
Turkey recalled its ambassador to Canada, the Foreign Ministry said Wednesday, after government ministers there reportedly took part in an event that labeled the Ottoman-era killings of Armenians as genocide. Ambassador Rafet Akgunay was called back for "thorough evaluations and consultations," Foreign Ministry spokesman Burak Ozugergin said, without saying why Akgunay was recalled or for how long. Another government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government rules, said the ambassador was being withdrawn temporarily to protest an event earlier this week in Canada commemorating the deaths of Armenians at the end of World War I as genocide. The official said Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper sent a message to the ceremony, which angered Turkey. Turkish news reports said Canadian government officials took part in the event.