Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar was one of just two Democrats to vote 'present' on a resolution recognizing the Armenian genocide at the hands of the Ottoman Turks a century ago.

Omar, who in the past has said the U.S. was 'founded on genocide,' voted present on a measure that passed the House Tuesday by a vote of 405 to 11. Democratic leadership called up the bill following Turkey's invasion of Syria. Sensitivity toward Turkey's strong opposition to the legislation has kept it at bay in the past.

The invasion angered members of both parties who are seeking protections for ethnic Kurds who fought alongside U.S. troops in the battle against ISIS.

The Democratic-controlled House voted 405-11 in favor of the resolution, which asserts that it is U.S. policy to commemorate as genocide the killing of 1.5 million Armenians by the Ottoman Empire from 1915 to 1923.

Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) was one of just two Democrats voting against a resolution to recognize the Armenian genocide

After casting her vote, Omar said in a statement: 'I also believe accountability for human rights violations—especially ethnic cleansing and genocide—is paramount. But accountability and recognition of genocide should not be used as cudgel in a political fight.'

Then she brought up the slave trade, the mass killing of Native Americans during colonization, and other atrocities.

'It should be done based on academic consensus outside the push and pull of geopolitics,' she continued. 'A true acknowledgement of historical crimes against humanity must include both the heinous genocides of the 20th century, along with earlier mass slaughters like the transatlantic slave trade and Native American genocide, which took the lives of hundreds of millions of indigenous people in this country. For this reason, I voted ‘present’ on final passage of H.Res. 296, the resolution Affirming the United States record on the Armenian Genocide.'

'A true acknowledgement of historical crimes against humanity must include both the heinous genocides of the 20th century, along with earlier mass slaughters like the transatlantic slave trade and Native American genocide,' Omar said in a statement

1915, World War I, The massacre of the Armenian populations in Turkey, an encampment of Armenian refugees on the deck of a French cruiser that rescued them

Armenian Genocide: Hanging on tripods. Systematic killing of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I, 1915 - 1923. Also known as Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and by Armenians as the Great Crime

This is the scene in Turkey in 1915 when Armenians were marched long distances and said to have been massacred

This 1915 file photo, shows Armenian victims of the massacres in Turkey

The resolution passed by a vote of 405 to 11, with three lawmakers voting present

Republicans backed the resolution 178 to 11, and Democrats backed it 226 to 0, with only two present votes. The other present votes were Republican Rep. Paul Gosar of Arizona and Democratic Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas.

Omar, who came to the U.S. as an immigrant from Sudan, is a member of the 'squad' who has frequently tangled with President Trump and is a sharp critic of Israel.

The symbolic but historic vote likely to inflame tensions with Turkey.

Omar also voted against bill meant to punish Turkey for its invasion of northern Syria.

'Accountability for the invasion of northern Syria is essential. Turkey’s incursion and the ensuing fallout is a humanitarian catastrophe—especially for the Kurdish people,' Omar said. 'But too often our sanctions policies are ill-considered, inhumane and hurt the very people we claim to be helping.'

She said the sanctions being imposed would 'hurt civilians rather than political leaders.'

'There are positive policies we could pursue—like banning or limiting weapons sales or creating a buffer zone—but pursuing sanctions that have no chance of being signed into law is the wrong response at the wrong time,' she said.

However the bill passed by the House does hit U.S. weapons sales to Turkey.

The bipartisan bill punishing Turkey for its invasion of northern Syria and illustrating both parties' dismay with President Donald Trump's retreat from the region sailed easily through the House on Tuesday.

The bill marks both parties' latest show of disapproval for Trump's decision this month to abandon the United States' longtime Kurdish allies against Islamic State fighters by pulling American forces away from northern Syria.

The measure underscores lawmakers' wariness of the cease-fire that Vice President Mike Pence struck with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and of the subsequent agreement between Turkey and Russia splitting control of the territory .

Despite Congress' acrimonious partisan divisions over Democrats' impeachment investigation of Trump, lawmakers approved the Syria sanctions by a lopsided 403-16. Republicans supported the measure by a 12-to-1 margin, joining virtually all Democrats.

Trump has declared victory in the region, saying the U.S. has little at stake in its conflicts. Critics say his moves have bolstered Turkish, Iranian and Russian sway in the area, jeopardized efforts to contain the Islamic State group and reduced U.S. leverage there.

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., said Trump's moves follow a pattern.

In this Monday, Oct. 28, 2019 photo, U.S. forces patrol Syrian oil fields. Pentagon is increasing U.S. efforts to protect Syria's oil fields from the extremist group as well as from Syria itself and the country's Russian allies. (AP Photo/Baderkhan Ahmad)

"The president of the United States stokes a crisis and then steps in with some sort of half-measure in a failed attempt to look like some kind of great deal is happening," Engel said. Instead, he said, the result has been "a catastrophe."

Rep. Michael McCaul of Texas, the committee's top Republican, cast the measure as a way to give Trump "additional congressional support" to reimpose sanctions on Turkey if needed. But he warned that the U.S. "cannot allow Turkey's invasion to hinder in any way" continued U.S. efforts to combat the Islamic State.

"I can think of nothing more dangerous that withdrawing all of our troops from Syria," McCaul added.

Trump has referred repeatedly to pulling all American troops out of Syria. The Pentagon has acknowledged it is keeping U.S. forces in eastern Syria to keep oil from falling into the hands of the Islamic State.

The measure would bar most U.S. weapons sales to Turkey and slap sanctions on foreigners attempting to send the Turks military equipment. It would also block high-ranking Turkish officials from their assets in the U.S. and restrict their travel here. Trump would be given a waiver to not impose those penalties if doing so would help U.S. "national security interests."

The sanctions are to start within weeks of passage and are supposed to stay in effect until Turkey withdraws and stops attacking the Kurds.

Tuesday's vote came as Congress is riven along partisan lines over a Democratic investigation into whether Trump should be impeached because of efforts he made to force Ukraine to investigate his Democratic political opponents.

It also followed Trump's announcement just two days ago of perhaps his highest-profile foreign policy achievement: a raid by U.S. special forces that led to the death Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the long-sought leader of the Islamic State group.

Earlier this month, the House voted 354-60 to approve a nonbinding measure assailing Trump's troop pullback.

Measures have been introduced in the Senate similar to the House legislation imposing sanctions and the separate one criticizing the troop withdrawal. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., hasn't brought them to a vote yet.

Russia and Turkey reached an agreement last week dividing control of northeast Syria and halting, at least for now, the Turkish invasion of the area. Ankara, which sees Syrian Kurds as a security threat, sought to push Kurdish forces away from its border.

Russia said Tuesday that tens of thousands of Syrian Kurdish fighters have completed their withdrawal from the area.