ISTANBUL, Turkey, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- An Algerian lawmaker chided France for condemning Turkey's alleged genocide against Armenians, saying Paris should acknowledge its own actions in Algeria.
Bounah Kamel, deputy speaker of the Algerian Parliament, said French colonial authorities had committed atrocities in Algeria between the end of World War II and 1962 when they finally left the North African nation.
"They condemn the Turkish activities allegedly organized against Armenians but don't discuss their own bloody activities," Kamel said Friday during an Organization of Islamic Cooperation conference in Istanbul.
Kamel said the fallout of French rule could be seen in a reduction of Algeria's population from 8 million when the French took over in 1830 to 6 million in 1962, Today's Zaman said.
Kamel's retort came after France voted this week to condemn Turkey's actions in Armenia during World War I that left vast numbers of ethnic Armenians dead or displaced.
