Overview '' The Burning Tigris : The Armenian Genocide and America 's Response '' is a book written by Peter Balakian , and published in 2003 . It details the Armenian Genocide , the events leading up to it , and the events following it . It begins with the state of the Ottoman Empire in the 1880s . Abdul Hamid II has come to power , and there are many issues in the country that he is expected to solve . Specifically , the country was losing money and land . Abdul Hamid II blamed these issues on non-muslims in the country , and in particular , the Armenians . Over the course of the 1890s laws are passed limiting the rights of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire . By the early 20th century , there was extreme overtaxing , robbery , and murder against Armenians , all going with no repercussion . The government began supporting these actions by sending the military to help . As the First World War was fought by the Ottoman Empire , the leader , Abdul Hamid II lost popularity . He was overthrown by a group of people known as The Young Turks . They said they would bring reforms for the Armenians , as well as end the war . Since he said this , the Armenians supported him , thinking that they would be treated as equals once more . Instead , the new government ordered masacres and death marches . Armenians were rounded up and killed . The ones lucky enough to escape the massacres were deported to other countries like Lebanon and Syria . The United States Red Cross was permitted into the country starting in 1915 . The help they could provide was limited . The United States Government was also considering trying to help the Armenians by creating a country which they would get after the First World War . Woodrow Wilson and some members of congress supported this idea , but it never worked fully because the United States had oil interests in the Ottoman Empire and wanted to remain on good terms . Armenia instead became a state in the Soviet Union . The United States had ambitious plans for what to do with the Armenians , but economic issues prevented the United States from helping in any meaningful way . Other European powers at the time also did not do much . More than one hundred high-ranking government officials from the Ottoman Empire were put on trial for war crimes , fewer than 20 were convicted , and then none of the served their full sentences
Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Burning Tigris