Genocide justification

Genocide justification is the claim that a genocide is morally excusable/defensible, necessary, and/or sanctioned by law.^[1] Genocide justification differs from genocide denial, which is the attempt to reject the occurrence of genocide. Perpetrators often claim that genocide victims presented a serious threat, justifying their actions by stating it was legitimate self-defense of a nation or state. According to modern international criminal law, there can be no excuse for genocide.^[2][3] Genocide is often camouflaged as military activity against combatants, and the distinction between denial and justification is often blurred.^[4]

Examples of genocide justification include the Turkish nationalists' claims in regard to the Armenian genocide, the Nazis' justifications behind the Holocaust, anti-Tutsi propaganda during the Rwandan genocide,^[5] Serbian nationalists' justifications for the Srebrenica massacre and the Myanmar government's claims about the Rohingya genocide.