Kardashians visit memorial to estimated 1.5 million Armenians dead under Ottomans

YEREVAN, Armenia – Kim Kardashian and relatives on Friday visited the memorial complex in the Armenian capital to the estimated 1.5 million Armenians killed by Ottoman Turks a century ago.

The celebrity was accompanied by rapper husband Kanye West, sister Khloe and two Armenian cousins, Kourtni and Kara.

She laid a bouquet of red tulips at the Tsitsernakaberd memorial’s eternal flame and the group listened to a talk from Suren Manukian, deputy director of the Genocide Institute.

Armenia and many scholars describe the deaths as the 20th century’s first genocide. Turkey denies the deaths constituted genocide, saying the toll is inflated and that those killed were victims of civil war and unrest.

On April 24, Armenia will commemorate the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the killings.

Earlier Friday, an Armenian company gave a plot of land to members of the Kardashian family.

Khloe Kardashian posted a photo on Facebook of a certificate granting her, Kim and their families a plot in a housing subdivision outside the capital Yerevan.

The visit of the Kardashians, which also includes the daughter of Kim and West, has attracted crowds of fans and journalists.

Ancestors of the Kardashians emigrated to the United States in the late 19th century.