Turkish community protest in Times Square against Mamdani’s comments

NEW YORK

Members of the Turkish-American community protested in Times Square on April 26 against New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani over his remarks on the 1915 events in the Ottoman Empire and Karabakh.

The protest was supported by several Turkish associations.Participants from different parts of the Turkish-American community carried placards and chanted slogans during the demonstration.

Brief tensions occurred between some Armenian individuals and members of the Turkish community, while digital trucks displaying messages against Mamdani’s claims also passed through Times Square.

In a statement issued during the protest, participants said Mamdani’s characterization of recent developments in Karabakh was inaccurate.

They said his remarks risked alienating communities in New York, a city they described as home to many cultures and ethnic groups.

The statement also said the events of 1915-1923 should be assessed in light of historical facts and called for avoiding rhetoric that could deepen misunderstandings.

Mamdani, who took office as New York mayor in January 2026, made the remarks in an April 24 post on X marking the anniversary of the 1915 events.

In the post, he said 1.5 million Armenians were killed by the Ottoman Empire and claimed that Azerbaijan and Türkiye attacked Armenians in Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020, adding that more than 100,000 Armenians were displaced from the region in 2023.

Türkiye objects to the presentation of the 1915 events as “genocide,” describing them as a tragedy in which both sides suffered casualties.

Ankara has repeatedly proposed the creation of a joint commission of historians from Türkiye and Armenia, as well as international experts, to examine the issue.