The Armenian Genocides
In the late 1800's and early 1900's, the Muslim Turks in Turkey wanted to eliminate the Christian Armenians from their country. They attempted to do this in three separate massacres, the third of which Veron Dumehjian was a part. The first two, which are mentioned by Veron, happened in 1894-1896 and 1909. These early massacres were not intended to eliminate the Armenians. However; they were intended to teach the Armenians that they must accept their status as unequal. The third massacre was the largest massacre, in which the Turks planned to kill all 1,500,000 Armenians in Turkey.
When World War I started, Armenians were given an option to help Turkey fight against Russia, but the Armenians refused because many of their kind lived in Russia. The Turks were angry, and drafted the Armenians anyway. Veron had two uncles who were drafted to help fight in the war.
Veron Cardinal
Veron_Front
English: Turkish civilians massacred by Armenians ...About this time, the mass deportations of Armenians to Syria started. Usually the Armenians had 1-2 days to prepare for their journey, but Veron's family had three. After they left, many of their homes were looted or torn apart for firewood. Veron's family was lucky because theirs remained intact, and after the war they could still live in it. Often, men were taken from their families at the city limits and shot. This left the woman, children, and elderly proceed to Syria. There was a group of rapist and murderers created by the government that was meant to attack the caravans and steal their possessions or take the woman. They are mentioned by Veron, and everyone feared them. They were unaware that this group was a government organization. Most of the Armenians died of starvation or sickness, and those who didn't had to see the carcasses of the dead...