"You have already been informed that the Government, by order of the Jemiet, has decided to destroy completely all the indicated persons living in Turkey… An end must be put to their existence, however tragic the measures taken may be, and no regard must be paid to either age or sex, or to any scruples of conscience."
Talaat Pasha (Mehmed Talaat) · 1915-09-29
Cipher telegram from the Ottoman Interior Ministry under Talaat Pasha to the governorate of Aleppo, 16 September 1331 (29 September 1915). Reproduced and authenticated by Taner Akçam from Ottoman archival sources; one of the most direct documentary attributions of intent.