- 15 juni 2010
ICRC: Israel's Blockade Breaks the Law Free Gaza: Send More Ships
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) issued a statement yesterday stating unequivocally that Israel's closure of the Gaza Strip constitutes collective punishment, an act prohibited under the Geneva Conventions. http://www.freegaza.org/en/home/56-news/1227-israels-gaza-blockade-breaks-law-says-icrc-
For the first time, the ICRC explicitly states that Israel's blockade constitutes a violation of international humanitarian law, confirming what the Free Gaza Movement has been saying all along the closure is illegal and states have neglected their obligation to uphold the Fourth Geneva Convention and compel Israel to end the deliberate strangulation of 1.5 million Palestinians locked in an open-air prison.
Therefore, our voyages to defy Israel's blockade are legal and necessary, as civil society is compelled to step up to defend human rights when governments refuse to do so, and we are already organizing another voyage called Freedom Flotilla Two.
In the early morning darkness of 31 May, Israel launched a lethal assault on the Freedom Flotilla, assassinating nine men and wounding over 50 human rights activists on all six boats in the flotilla. The world's attention is now focused on Israel's continued flagrant violations of international and maritime law, as they hijacked our ships in international waters, forced us into an Israeli port, illegally detained, coerced, and beat the passengers and illegally confiscated or destroyed electronic equipment, audio, photo and video evidence, personal possessions as well as much of the cargo.
The Free Gaza Movement is currently working with attorneys in a number of countries, including Turkey, the UK, the Netherlands, Israel and the United States to pursue legal action, since people were killed or badly injured and property was destroyed during Israel's attack on us in international waters.
We continue to call for an independent, international investigation into the attack. Israel's internal government investigation committee is an unacceptable alternative. Israel must not be allowed to continue acting above the law and cannot be trusted to investigate its own actions. Barring political will by our governments to hold Israel accountable, global civil society will continue to act.
We will pursue legal action around the world, intensify boycott, divestment and sanctions efforts, and continue to send ships to Gaza until the illegal blockade is ended.
Contact: Huwaida Arraf, +972-598-336-215
Greta Berlin, +33 607 374 512
Audrey Bomse, +33 638 972 443
http://www.freegaza.org/en/home/press-releases/1228-icrc-israels-blockade-breaks-the-law-free-gaza-send-more-ships
'Toothless’ Gaza raid inquiry as Israel eases blockade
Israel’s cabinet yesterday approved a commission of inquiry into its May 4 attack on a flotilla headed for Gaza. The defence minister Ehud Barak listens at left as the prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, at right, speaks during yesterday’s meeting in Jerusalem.
TEL AVIV // Israel yesterday named the team who will conduct an internal inquiry into its botched commando attack on a Gaza-bound aid ship two weeks ago, in which nine people died.
The investigation was welcomed by the United States, but immediately denounced by Palestinians and by Turkey as toothless and lacking credibility, despite the inclusion of two foreign observers.
Meanwhile Tony Blair, the international envoy to the Middle East, said Israel has indicated it will ease its crippling three-year-old blockade of Gaza within days. The former British prime minister spoke during a summit of European Union members in Luxembourg, during which the 27-member bloc demanded that Israel lift the “unacceptable and counterproductive” siege.
Mr Blair said Israel has agreed to allow more supplies into Gaza, including food and building materials, while maintaining a ban on arms, armaments and explosives. The major change is that a list of specifically banned goods will replace the current restrictive list of permitted items.
Israel said its inquiry panel will be headed by Jacob Turkel, a retired Israeli supreme court judge, and will include an Israeli international law expert and an ex-army general. David Trimble, the former First Minister of Northern Ireland and a Nobel peace laureate, and Ken Watkin, Canada’s former chief military prosecutor, will observe the proceedings but will have no voting rights on the panel’s proceedings or findings. Their access to some confidential documents is also likely to be restricted.
Israeli commentators said the panel was part of a deal with the US under which Israel would agree to loosen its restrictions on Gaza in exchange for backing from Barack Obama, the US president, for an internal and weak Israeli investigation into the aid ship attack.
Yaron Ezrahi, a political science professor at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said: “The transaction is that Israel will go further than it was initially prepared to in order to lift the blockade on Gaza, without losing control over the import of war materials into the territory, and in return will have a commission with few powers.”
An easing of Israel’s siege is likely to divert attention from what appears to be a powerless investigation. The panel will look at the legality of the raid and examine whether the blockade conforms with international law, but it will not question the commandos, relying instead on summaries of the army’s internal investigation.
The choice of Mr Turkel also appeared to be convenient for Israel’s political echelon. The former judge told Israeli radio in an interview after the attack on the ship that he is not a believer in drawing conclusions about individuals in such inquiries, or dismissing those responsible for failure.
Furthermore, some Israeli commentators yesterday also questioned the speed and efficiency at which the commission will work, given the ages of its Israeli participants.
While Mr Turkel, at 75, is the youngest of them, he will be joined by Shabtai Rosen, a 93-year-old British-born professor and former diplomat, and Amos Horev, an 86-year-old retired army major general and a former president of an Israeli university.
The Israeli government also appeared to be in no hurry for the commission to launch its work, setting no deadline for it to publish its findings. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, insisted yesterday that the committee will give a “convincing and credible response” to the world.
Suggesting that Israel needed the panel in order to salvage its image, he told his right-wing Likud faction: “This committee strengthens our ability to fight in the international political arena. There is a certain price that we are paying, but under the current circumstances this is the best move.”
The creation of the internal Israeli commission, however, drew condemnation from Palestinians and from Turkey.
Eyad Sarraj, a prominent Gaza-based commentator and psychiatrist, who is also a campaigner for Israel to end its three-year-old blockade of Gaza, said: “Israel should not investigate itself. You cannot commit the crime and then also be the policeman, the judge and the executioner. This inquiry is an American-supported cover-up for Israel to get away with carrying out this attack.”
Mr Sarraj also claimed that Mr Trimble’s presence makes the inquiry biased towards Israel because he is known to be close to Dore Gold, a confidant of Mr Netanyahu. Mr Trimble also last month became one of the prominent co-founders of the pro-Israel, Paris-based advocacy group “Friends of Israel” – which was established just one day after the Israeli raid on the aid flotilla.
Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, said after a meeting in Paris with Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, that the Israeli inquiry “does not correspond to the request of the United Nations security council” for an impartial and credible investigation.
Turkey also reacted angrily to the Israeli move, with Ahmet Davutoglu, the foreign minister, saying in Ankara: “Israel’s one-sided inquiry is not of value to us. We want a commission to be set up under the control of the United Nations.”
He threatened that Turkey may “take measures” in its relations with Israel should its demands not be heeded. Turkey, until now Israel’s closest ally in the Muslim world, has already withdrawn its ambassador from Tel Aviv and cancelled military drills with Israel.
Yesterday, Turkish papers reported that the country had suspended talks with Israeli defence companies on a US$180 million (Dh660m) deal for unmanned aircraft.
In Gaza, Hamas dismissed the possibility that Israel may ease its blockade and condemned its announcement of an investigative panel. Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said: “The international community should strive for a complete halt to the Gaza siege and not give Israel the opportunity to escape from its responsibility for the crimes it has committed.”
http://fwd4.me/06GR 16 oct 2010, 23:49 , Respect -
Maria 17 juni 2010
VIDEO / UN screening of 'one-sided' Gaza flotilla film spurs Israeli complaint
Israel's mission to the UN prevented from responding to screening of documentary film by one of the activists aboard the Mavi Marmara.
Israel on Thursday issued an official complaint against the president of the United Nations Correspondents Association for deliberately barring Israel from responding to the public screening of a documentary film on the events of the recent Gaza-bound aid flotilla, made by one of the activists.
(5:14) Smuggled New Video Footage Of Israels Gaza Mavi Marmara Flotilla Massacre
Israel on Thursday issued an official complaint against the president of the United Nations Correspondents Association for deliberately barring Israel from responding to the public screening of a documentary film on the events of the recent Gaza-bound aid flotilla, made by one of the activists.
On May 31, Israeli navy commandos boarded one of the ships in the flotilla, the Turkish Mavi Marmara, and were physically assaulted by the activists aboard. A clash ensued resulting in the deaths of nine activists and dozens of injuries.
The president of the UN Correspondents Association, Giampaolo Pioli, organized an event several days ago during which a documentary film by one of the Mavi Marmara activists was screened. In the invitation sent to all the foreign correspondents in New York Pioli wrote that he was inviting them to the debut of a film depicting the "Israeli attack on human rights activists."
The spokeswoman for the Israeli delegation to the UN asked to take part in the event and present scenes from a film prepared by the Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson's Unit especially for the UN delegation.
At first, the president of the association agreed, but two hours before the start of the event he announced that he was canceling the screening of the Israeli film, offering to air the IDF film at a later date, and at a different location.
In the complaint, which Israel distributed to foreign correspondents in New York on Thursday, spokeswoman Mirit Cohen wrote that "I write this letter of complaint to officially protest your mishandling of the events."
"Offering UN media facilities to screen video produced by a one-sided activist while actively preventing a member state of the United Nations an opportunity to respond in real time is severely unethical," she wrote. "Your decision to ban the Permanent Mission of Israel from offering any feedback or comment during the aforementioned screening ensured that the reporters invited to the event would be offered only part of the story."
"Furthermore," she added, "the fact that you cancelled the participation of the Permanent Mission of Israel only two hours prior to the commencement of the screening raises grave doubts as to the reasons behind this decision."
In conclusion, Cohen demanded an official apology.
http://bit.ly/cwsRZ1
Goldstone
(8:47) Gaza Flotilla - Facts vs Israel Fiction
23 juni 2010
Two Hollandese Citizens on Flotilla Sue the Israeli Government
The Dutch Foreign Ministry informed Amin abu Rashed, the coordinator of the European Campaign to Lift the Siege on Gaza, who was present on the freedom flotilla, that they will pay all expenses of a lawsuit which he filed together with another Hollandese citizen against the Israeli authorities because of their abduction in the international water from the ships of the freedom flotilla on May 31 2010.
Abu Rashed stated in a press conference that he and Ms. Anne de Jong filed a lawsuit against the Israeli government on last Thursday June 17 2010, and that a lawyer specialized in the international laws has presented their complaints, because they were kidnapped at sea and detained without a lawyer. He added that they will ask for a compensation for the moral and the material damage which was done to them during the abduction from aboard the ships in international waters.
Abu Rashed pointed out that less than 24 hours after they filed the lawsuit against the Israeli authorities, the Dutch Foreign Ministry informed them that it would bear all expenses of lawsuit. He added that the Dutch government had been following the news about their abduction, and that the Dutch Consul had welcomed them at the airport in Istanbul. He offered them all the assistance to secure their return to the Netherlands, where they were greeted at the airport of Amsterdam by some representatives of the Dutch government.
http://fwd4.me/05vx
Balkan summit condemns Israeli raid on Gaza flotilla
13 southeastern European countries, including Turkey, call for independent and internationally credible investigation on Gaza flotilla deaths.
Turkey and 12 other southeastern European countries on Wednesday denounced the recent Israeli raid on an aid flotilla headed to Gaza, which left eight Turks and one Turkish American dead.
The countries said in a joint declaration at the end of a Balkan summit that they want an impartial, independent and internationally credible investigation on this matter. They also stressed the urgent need to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Nine pro-Palestinian activists - eight Turks and an American-Turkish teenager - were killed after a squad of naval commandos boarded a ship trying to breach Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip. Israel says its soldiers began shooting only after a mob of activists attacked them.
The statement came at the end of a meeting of the 13-member Southeast European Cooperation Process (SEECP).
Meanwhile, Haaretz learned late Tuesday that Arab and Muslim members of the United Nations, led by Malaysia, are working toward assembling an emergency UN session to discuss Israel's last month raid of a Gaza-bound flotilla.
The resolutions reached at an emergency UN session do not bear immediate practical consequences, and are considered recommendations. However, the representatives of dozens of member states could be allowed to speak at such a session, a fact that could turn the debate into a massive diplomatic assault against Israel, which, in turn, could add to international pressure on Israel to lift the blockade on Gaza.
http://fwd4.me/05vw
Belgian lawyers to charge Barak and Livni for war crimes
Two Belgian lawyers, working on behalf of a group of Palestinians, plan to charge 14 Israeli politicians, including Ehud Olmert, Ehud Barak, Tzipi Livni and Matan Vilnai, for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
LONDON - Two Belgian lawyers announced on Wednesday that, working on behalf of a group of Palestinians - including, significantly, one who is a Belgian national - they were intending to charge 14 Israeli politicians, including Ehud Olmert, Ehud Barak, Tzipi Livni and Matan Vilnai, for crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The lawyers, Georges-Henri Beauthier and Alexis Deswaef said they were acting on behalf of 13 Palestinian victims from Gaza, and an additional man - Anouar El Okka, a Belgian doctor of Palestinian origin.
The current charges would be brought against the Israeli leaders using the principle of universal jurisdiction, the lawyers said - and would focus on alleged crimes, including the use of phosperous, committed during the Israeli bombardment of Gaza in January 2009.
In Belgian, the law states that there must be a connection between the crimes and a Belgian citizen in order to successfully prosecute under universal jurisdiction - something El Okka would supply.
This is not the first time the Belgian system has been asked to charge Israeli with such offenses. Just last year, Belgian attorneys, acting on behalf of Belgian nationals with relatives who were wounded or killed in Gaza, petitioned a court there to arrest then Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni upon her arrival in Brussels. However, in that case it seems the connection between the victims and Belgium was not strong enough to follow through with the case.
The most famous case to date involving Belgium and Israel was in 2001 when there was a criminal complaint in Belgium on behalf of 21 survivors of the 1982 massacre at the Shabra and Shatila refugee camps in Beirut. The then Israeli Defense Minister (Ariel Sharon) and members of the Lebanese Christian militia were charged with war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. It was after this case that the law was changed to include a clause about a Belgian connection.
This was far from the only negative attention to Israel in Europe this week.
In Strasbourg on Wednesday, the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly was expected to issue a condemnation of Israel%u2019s behavior over the flotilla events and call for an independent international investigation.
The President of the council Mehemet Kavasgholu, a Turk, told a Turkish newspaper last week that he would not only demand such an investigation but would also set up the investigation under the council's auspices, something that lies within their mandate.
MK Yochanan Plezner, chair of the permanent Israeli delegation to the Council said yesterday that he and his team were hoping to avoid such an outcome.
They will no doubt condemn Israel but our goal is to ensure that an independent international inquiry is not established, and that the council makes do with the Israeli commission, he said.
Plezner added that it is very clear the mood in Europe was increasingly unfavorable to Israel.
There is definitely a more critical mood and we see this mainly with out friends and allies who are less willing to stand alongside us, he said. And, our foes are becoming more adept at exploiting the liberal discourse against Israel....so it is becoming less politically correct to support of stand by Israel.
In Sweden meanwhile, dockworkers launched a week-long boycott of cargo to and from Israel to protest the flotilla episode. About 1,500 members of the Swedish Dockworkers Union began the boycott on Tuesday across the country's ports, which handle more than 95 per cent of Sweden's foreign trade.
Bjoern Borg, the dockworkers union's chairman, said they were calling for an international investigation into the May 31 raid and added Israel's recent easing of its Gaza blockade was insufficient.
"We don't think it is far-reaching enough," he said. "We want them to lift the blockade."
33 Greeks to sue Israeli officials over Gaza flotilla raid
(Grieks protest)
Group of Greek citizens who took part in Gaza-bound flotilla that was taken over by the IDF last month to sue senior Israeli officials - including Defense Min. Barak, and army chief Ashkenazi.
33 Greek citizens who took part in the Gaza-bound flotilla that was stopped by the IDF last month are planning to sue senior Israeli officials, including Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi and Navy chief Eliezer Merom, Army Radio reported on Wednesday.
The Greek activists also plan to sue soldiers and police officers who participated in the IDF's interception of the Turkish-flagged ship the Mavi Marmara, which resulted in the deaths of nine activists.
According to flotilla participants, Israel violated Greek criminal law as well as international treaties when it stopped the ships by force outside of Israel's territorial waters.
The lawyer for the plaintiffs announced the intended lawsuits at a news conference in Athens.
http://fwd4.me/05vu
Netanyahu: Israel's legitimacy is under attack
The prime minister speaks at a Knesset discussion on Israel's collapsing world status, and calls on the PA president to enter direct peace talks.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned Wednesday that Israel's legitimacy is being attacked, during a Knesset discussion on Israel's collapsing international status.
"We know that the attacks on Israel are threatening its existence, since we constantly hear people saying 'go back to Poland or Morocco'. They are essentially telling us to dismantle the Zionist enterprise."
Netanyahu went on to criticize the United Nations and other international institutions for targeting Israel alone for condemnation.
"They want to strip us of the natural right to defend ourselves. When we defend ourselves against rocket attack, we are accused of war crimes. We cannot board sea vessels when our soldiers are being attacked and fired upon, because that is a war crime."
"They are essentially saying that the Jewish nation does not have the right to defend itself against the most brutal attacks and it doesn't have the right to prevent additional weapons from entering territories from which it is attacked," he said.
Netanyahu stressed that Israel has taken steps to push forward a resolution with the Palestinians though they have not reciprocated the gesture.
"The Palestinian side promoted the Goldstone report, organized boycotts, and tried to prevent our entrance into the OECD. The Palestinian Authority has no intentions of engaging in direct talks with us," Netanyahu exclaimed.
"I call on [PA President Mahmoud] Abbas, yet again, to enter direct talks with us, because there is no other way to solve the conflict between us without direct dialogue. How could we possibly live side by side if they can't even enter the same room as us?"
Also during the discussion, Kadima MK Dalia Itzik called on Netanyahu to form a unity government with Kadima.
"If you truly want to form a unity government, a new government in line with the people of Israel, you should understand that what matters is not Likud or Kadima, not your ego or our ego, not you or me, but what should guide us is the good of the country," she said.
Earlier, Balad MK Hanin Zuabi, who took part in the Gaza-bound aid flotilla raided by the IDF on May 31, accused fellow MKs of hypocrisy for attacking her for her criticism of the blockade of Gaza.
"I was attacked personally and politically, but two weeks later the prime minister decided to end the civilian blockade of Gaza," she said. "Three weeks ago, I spoke on this podium, after nine people were killed to preserve the blockade. And now, after the prime minister ends the civilian blockade, as he calls it, no one yelled, no one even said a word."
http://fwd4.me/05vs
Malaysia seeks emergency UN session on Gaza flotilla deaths
Diplomatic sources say effort stems from a desire to embarrass Israel in response to what Arab states consider a lax UN response to the raid.
Arab and Muslim members of the United Nations, led by Malaysia, are working toward assembling an emergency UN session to discuss Israel's last month raid of a Gaza-bound flotilla, Haaretz learned late Tuesday.
The resolutions reached at an emergency UN session do not bear immediate practical consequences, and are considered recommendations. However, the representatives of dozens of member states could be allowed to speak at such a session, a fact that could turn the debate into a massive diplomatic assault against Israel, which, in turn, could add to international pressure on Israel to lift the blockade on Gaza.
Diplomatic sources said that recent efforts were triggered by the Arab and Muslim nations' dissatisfaction with the results of a UN Security Council session concerning the May 31 raid, which took place just days after the maritime operation, and which culminated with a presidential denouncement of Israel and a demand for a thorough inquiry.
The sources also told Haaretz that the push for a special UN session was led by Malaysia, who sources said had been inspired by similar efforts by Syria and Iran to place the aftermath of the flotilla raid high on the international agenda.
Malaysia's parliament, which is already known for its extreme anti-Israel stance, had already adopted a resolution calling for steps to be taken against Israel in response to the flotilla incident.
The official website of the country's Foreign Ministry even quoted Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak as saying that the flotilla raid "opened the eyes of the people of Malaysia and the rest of the world to the atrocities of the Zionist regime towards the people of Palestine which hitherto we have read about and seen on television," as well as other anti-Israel remarks.
Sources said that Malaysia was interested in being considered a leading country in the push as a means to advocate its candidacy to the UNSC next year.
http://fwd4.me/05vr
29 juni 2010
Turkish autopsy: Israeli soldiers shot activists from choppers
Autopsy reports showed that the corpses of the activists were washed before being sent to Turkey.
The Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples (MAZLUM-DER) stated during a press conference on Monday that Israeli commandos shot at activists on the Mavi Marmara from their helicopters, according to autopsy reports.
Yasin Divrak, a lawyer for MAZLUM-DER, said the autopsy reports prepared by the Council of Forensic Medicine (ATK) proved that Israeli soldiers, contrary to their claims of self-defense, aimed to kill and started to shoot even before descending onto the Mavi Marmara, which was carrying humanitarian aid to the under-siege Gaza on May 31.
During the Israeli raid, nine peace activists were killed and dozens more injured. Israel claims that its soldiers attacked passengers in self-defense because some of the passengers assaulted Israeli soldiers with sticks and knives after they descended onto the ship.
"Corpses washed"
Turkey's Cihan news agency said, the autopsy reports also showed that the corpses of the activists were washed before being sent to Turkey and some alcohol had been found in their bodies.
The press conference was held by MAZLUM-DER Istanbul branch Chairman Cihat Gokdemir, lawyers Divrak and Selcuk Kar and the deputy chairman of the association, Gulden Solmaz. Divrak said: All the deaths occurred due to injuries caused by firearms. The ATK reports show that the bodies have been washed, so it was not possible to find any traces of chemicals or gun powder. We wonder why Israel washed the bodies of those who were killed.
Divrak added that since the bodies had been washed and all the clothes were extremely dirty it was not possible to determine the shooting range.
Most of the bullets did not stay in the bodies but entered and exited the bodies. Some bullets exited the skull but entered [the body] again, he stated.
Divrak underlined that a very unusual bullet was found in the brain of activist Ibrahim Bilgen. He said this bullet surprised doctors because they have never seen this kind of bullet before.
Israel claims that the soldiers were attacked and that they were defending themselves. But the autopsy reports show that this is not true. Most of the bullets came from above and entered the skulls. It is obvious that the bullets came from the choppers, he said.
http://www.worldbulletin.net/news_detail.php?id=60670
1 juli 2010
'Flotilla passengers were tortured'
The organization which sent the Gaza aid flotilla which was intercepted by the IDF earlier this month, released a report Thursday outlining the events of the raid.
Describing the goal of the aid flotilla as "completely civilian in nature" and "carrying the conscience of the world," the report categorized the IDF interception as a terrorist attack carried out by the Israeli government in "international waters against civilians who had come together for peaceful purposes."
Further claims included torture by Israeli authorities once the passengers were taken into custody and brought into the Ashdod port. "The participants received physical blows and were subjected to psychological torture," the report alleged.
The report continued to explain that the IDF soldiers used machine guns to fire at the Mavi Marmara before boarding, as three different types of shots were heard by the passengers. The soldiers who rappelled from the helicopters onto the ship, shot into the crowd as they descended using real bullets, according to the IHH.
IHH described that the raid developed in a hostile manner with the objective to kill, and considered the initial fired shots by the IDF not as warnings, but as shots that were meant to kill unarmed civilians on the ship. The passengers that were killed by shots to the head, who according to the report were unarmed, further proves the objective of the IDF, claimed IHH.
The three IDF soldiers taken below deck by passengers who were allegedly trying to protect themselves from the soldiers, were being taken to the ship's doctors to be treated, explains the report.
The report accused the IDF of several crimes, including the obstruction of communication and severing of communications, illegal questioning and arrest, confiscation of passports, the seizure of ships, humanitarian aid and personal items, and physical and psychological torture, maltreatment and physical abuse by Israeli authorities.
Numerous passengers were quoted in the report, expressing their side of the events while being on the ship. In addition, the report included various photographs of the raid, including photos of Israeli soldiers and injured passengers. The names of the dead and injured passengers were also listed in the report.
The 42-page report included computer generated graphics of the Israeli naval operation including coordinates along with a chronology of events of the raid.
http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=180104
Turkish Aid From Flotilla Begins Arriving in Gaza
A logistics officer of the World Health Organization overseeing workers unloading electric scooters at a warehouse east of Gaza City on Wednesday.
GAZA One month after Israeli commandos killed nine Turks in a raid on a flotilla trying to break the Gaza blockade, the ships cargo of aid has begun to arrive here by land, starting Wednesday with 82 second-hand battery-powered scooters for the handicapped.
In the same pipeline are hundreds more scooters, hospital beds, drugs, crutches and surgical tools, building materials, food and clothing, said Mahmoud Daher, a health officer for the World Health Organization here.
The cargo has been sitting in Israel for weeks while the Hamas authorities, the Israeli military and international aid agencies negotiated its fate.
Israel wanted to send in only materials that it was sure could not be used for weapons by Hamas. It also did not want the sponsor of the flotilla, a Turkish Islamic charity known by the initials I.H.H., to distribute the goods because of its close ties to Hamas. Hamas, meanwhile, said it wanted either all the aid or nothing.
In the end, the United Nations agreed to distribute the goods. The arrangement was acceptable to all sides, but left I.H.H. officials in Gaza deeply upset.
A convoy of 128 trucks carried the cargo into Gaza from Israel as the American Middle East envoy, George J. Mitchell, watched from the Israeli side. He expressed approval at Israel's agreement, in the wake of the flotilla disaster, to ease its blockade somewhat, though the movement of goods and people out of Gaza remains largely blocked.
We appreciate the changes that have been made,Mr. Mitchell said. There has been a great deal of progress in terms of permitting additional goods into Gaza. He added that the United States would work with Israel on further steps that will be taken in the near future.
The scooters were brought in on flatbed trucks and driven to Karni Crossing in east central Gaza. United Nations workers driving forklifts moved them into an unused warehouse in the evening, in near total darkness because of a dispute between Hamas and the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank over who pays for electricity here, there is an acute shortage.
Mr. Daher, of the World Health Organization, told Israel he would not accept the scooters without their batteries and chargers, something Israeli officials considered withholding out of fear they would be diverted to militant use. Mr. Daher prevailed, and as the scooters began to arrive, a colleague, Khamis Abultayef, said each scooter would be checked for both.
Mr. Daher added that with numerous hospitals and clinics, Gaza could use a great deal of equipment and medicine, although he worried that the donations and the needs were not perfectly suited to one another.
We have been given a great deal of Tamiflu and food supplements, he said, but what we really need are cancer drugs and medicine for hemophilia and cystic fibrosis.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/01/world/middleeast/01gaza.html?ref=middleeast
2 juli 2010
Report: Israel to apologize to Turkey
Israel is prepared to apologize to Turkey for the flotilla incident and to compensate the families of the injured parties, Turkish newspaper Huriyyet reported on Friday. Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer's office has denied the reports.
According to a different Turkish paper, Zaman, during the secret meeting between Industry, Trade and Labor Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu in Brussels, Davutoglu threatened that Israel-Turkey relations may worsen, with Turkey closing its airspace to commerical flights, as well as military ones, should Israel fail to apologize.
Huriyyet reported that Ben-Eliezer signaled that Israel is willing to apologize, and even pay the families of those inured in the IDF raid on the Mavi Marmara.
However, Ben-Eliezer has denied that Israel will compensate those injured on the flotilla.
"No one intends to do that, and the minister did not promise anything," Ben-Eliezer's spokesman said.
There will be a second meeting if the Israeli side takes a step toward [meeting] our demands, a Turkish diplomatic source told Huriyyet on Thursday. We do not categorically dismiss meeting with Israeli officials at this level.
Huriyyet also reported that Israel initiated the clandestine meeting, despite the fact that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's office stated that it Turkey made the first contact.
http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=180231
Netanyahu rules out apology to Turkey over deadly raid
JERUSALEM Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday praised secret talks with Ankara aimed at mending ties after a deadly raid on a Gaza-bound Turkish aid ship but ruled out any apology.
On May 31, Israeli special forces stormed a flotilla of six ships carrying aid for blockaded Gaza, killing nine Turks on board one of the vessels and sparking international outrage and straining ties with one-time ally Ankara.
"Israel cannot apologise because its soldiers had to defend themselves to avoid being lynched by a crowd," Netanyahu said in an interview with Channel 1 public television.
"We regret the loss of life," Netanyahu said.
The raid on the Mavi Marmara Turkish-owned ferry killed eight Turks and a dual US-Turkish citizen, prompting Ankara to recall its ambassador from Tel Aviv and cancel three planned joint military exercises.
Netanyahu's remarks come two days after Trade Minister Benjamin Ben Eliezer and Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu held secret talks in Brussels, to try and ease the feud sparked by the deadly raid.
Netanyahu praised the talks.
"This meeting was important in itself. It is important for Turkey and for Israel that such meetings take place to prevent the deterioration of relations," he said.
Davutoglu told Ben Eliezer in Brussels that Turkey demanded an apology for the bloodshed and that Israel should compensate the families of the victims as well as agree to an international inquiry into the raid, Turkish foreign ministry spokesman Burak Ozugergin has said.
But Netanyahu said that no compensation has been discussed and insisted that a commission set up by Israel to investigate the raid "meets the demands" of the international community for an investigation.
Israel has resisted calls for an international probe into the raid, but appointed a commission of inquiry headed by a retired Supreme Court judge with two international observers.
"This commission has asked for widespread prerogatives and we have agreed to its request because we have nothing to hide," said Netanyahu.
The Israeli military also has launched its own internal investigation.
Israel has defended the raid by its special forces saying it had to stop vessels from travelling to Gaza since they could be carrying weapons for the Islamist Hamas rulers of the blockaded coastal enclave.
Meanwhile, the Brussels talks have sparked tensions in Israel as it emerged that Netanyahu gave the go-ahead for the meeting without informing hardline Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.
On Friday, Netanyahu met Lieberman to mend ties.
At the meeting, Lieberman reiterated that he does not want Israel to apologise or pay the compensation Turkey is seeking, saying it would harm Israel's international standing, an official said.
Elsewhere, Netanyahu said that during a visit to Washington next week for talks with US President Barack Obama he will discuss Iran's nuclear programme and peace talks with the Palestinians.
"I will do everything possible to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, and to promote the peace process," with the Palestinians, Netanyahu said of his July 6 talks with Obama.
Netanyahu had to cancel a scheduled meeting with Obama to return home after the deadly May 31 raid.
US State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said on Thursday that he anticipated Netanyahu would give Obama "a report on the early stages of the Israeli investigation into the flotilla tragedy."
http://fwd4.me/06GN 17 oct 2010, 00:21 , Respect -
Maria 4 juli 2010
Israel expands flotilla inquiry
Netanyahu, second right, said he would appear
before the inquiry panel
Israel has expanded the mandate of a commission investigating a deadly raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, enabling the panel to compel witnesses to appear and testify under oath.
However, the decision by Israel's cabinet on Sunday does not widen its remit to include examination of political leaders' decision-making in ordering the May 31 raid in which nine Turkish activists were killed.
"The government has unanimously decided to extend the powers of the Tirkel Commission. The commission of enquiry will be joined by two experts and will hear witnesses speaking under oath," an official statement said.
The five-man inquiry panel led by former Supreme Court Justice Jacob Tirkel will now have subpoena powers and witnesses will be sworn in, effectively exposing them to perjury charges for any false testimony.
Tirkel has said he would summon Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, Ehud Barak, the defence minister, and Lieutenant-General Gabi Ashkenazi, Israel's military chief, to appear.
Netanyahu has said he, Barak and Ashkenazi would testify.
Other military personnel are not likely to appear before the panel but will be questioned in a separate military investigation.
Amid an international outcry over the raid, Israel rejected a proposal by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon for an international inquiry, but appointed two foreign observers - David Trimble, a Northern Ireland politician and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and Canadian jurist Ken Watkin - to the panel.
Tirkel has said the commission's mandate calls for an examination of whether Israel's naval blockade of the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and the flotilla's interception conformed with international law.
It also will investigate the actions of the convoy's organisers and participants.
Israel has said its commandos were enforcing a blockade necessary to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip and that they only opened fire when activists with knives and clubs assaulted a boarding party.
In response to Western criticism, including from its biggest ally, the United States, Israel has since eased the land blockade of Gaza, allowing most civilian goods through, while continuing to enforce the naval embargo of the coastal territory.
http://fwd4.me/06GM
(4:08) ISRAEL ATTACK ON GAZA AID SHIP (MAVI MARMARA)
7 juli 2010
UN General Assembly cancels session on Gaza flotilla
President of General Assembly sends letter to member states announcing cancellation of the planned session; some Arab states had reservations about holding the session.
The United Nations on Wednesday officially canceled a planned debate on Israel's May 31 raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla.
In June, Malaysia requested an emergency session by the UN General Assembly to discuss the mid-sea confrontation, which left nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists dead. Malaysia's request received support from Syria and Iran.
But Ali Abdussalam Treki, the president of the UN General Assembly, recently sent a letter to members of the General Assembly saying that the session would not be held.
The decision to cancel the session was not unexpected. Recent discussions held amongst representatives of Arab countries found that there were differences of opinion on the merits of holding the session and that some countries had reservations about it.
"After consulting with member states I have decided not to hold an interactive thematic debate of the General Assembly on the situation in the Middle East as previously envisaged for July 8, 2010," Treki's letter said. "I will continue to consult with member states on the issue and will keep you informed of further developments."
http://fwd4.me/06GL
Most of Marmara wounded had Islamic ties report
Vast majority of passengers wounded aboard flotilla were Turkish nationals affiliated with Islamic groups.
A vast majority of the passengers wounded aboard the Mavi Marmara ship, commandeered by the Israel Navy in late May, were Turkish nationals affiliated with Islamic organizations, according to a report released on Tuesday by the Israel-based Intelligence Terrorism and Information Center.
According to the report, 53 passengers were wounded during clashes with navy commandos from the elite Shayetet 13 unit and 23 of them were reported to have sustained serous wounds. Nine other passengers, all Turkish nationals, were killed during the raid.
The center, known by its Hebrew acronym MALAM, compared a list of the wounded released by the IHH the socalled Turkish humanitarian organization that sponsored the Mavi Marmara with lists of the passengers that the navy found aboard the vessel, which was stopped on May 31 as it tried to break the Israel-imposed sea blockade on the Gaza Strip.
Israel outlawed the IHH several years ago for its alleged ties with Hamas, and Defense Minister Ehud Barak called the organization extremist supporters of terror.
The report identified 37 of the wounded as members of the IHH or other sympathetic Turkish organizations.
According to the findings, all of the 23 passengers seriously wounded were Turkish males who had all, except for one, boarded the Mavi Marmara in Anatolia. Three of them are known IHH activists, and 13 others are active in other Turkish organizations, which MALAM said appeared to be of an Islamic nature.
Among those not wounded seriously, seven were identified as IHH members, and 13 as active in other Turkish organizations also believed to be of an Islamic nature, the report said.
According to the report, the comparison of the lists and the identities of those wounded backs up the IDF's claims that the Shayetet 13 commandos encountered a well-organized group of mercenaries who had planned a violent attack against the soldiers.
http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=180664
UN launches probe into flotilla raid
Former president of International Criminal Court to head investigation.
The UN on Tuesday began its probe into Israel's raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla last month, despite misgivings from the US, and Israel's establishment of its own internal committee to investigate the incident.
The probe is headed by a former president of the International Criminal Court, Canadian Philippe Kirsch, who is well-known in international law circles.
Kirsch recently judged an international competition on the 'laws of war,' in which in Israeli team was awarded first prize.
The UN probe began the same day Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and US President Barack Obama discussed peace initiatives in Washington.
The US was against the UN probe, which 87 senators opposed in a letter last month to Obama.
The Human Rights Council decided to set up the probe within 48 hours of the flotilla raid.
Turkey has demanded an apology for the raid on the flotilla, which resulted in the deaths of nine Turkish citizens, but Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has refused, insisting there will be no apology.
http://www.jpost.com/International/Article.aspx?id=180697
8 juli 2010
Israel must lift Gaza blockade and answer for flotilla raid, says Turkey
Britain's foreign secretary, William Hague (right), with Turkey's foreign minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, after a press conference in London today.
Foreign minister Ahmet Davutoglu uses London visit to issue warning that Israel faces 'gradual disengagement' by former ally
Israel must lift its blockade of the Gaza Strip and be "held accountable" for its attack on a ship carrying aid to the Palestinian territory, Turkey's foreign minister has said.
Ahmet Davutoglu, visiting London, demanded that Israel face its legal responsibility for boarding the Mavi Marmara, an action in which eight Turks and a Turkish-American citizen were killed in international waters on 31 May.
Davutoglu did not repeat a warning earlier this week that Turkey would sever its diplomatic relations with Israel but warned of "gradual stages" of disengagement if did not respond to Ankara's demands over the "freedom flotilla" affair.
Turkey would take "any measures to protect its citizens", he said after talks with the British foreign secretary, William Hague. "We expect Israel either to apologise or to accept an international investigation. I think this is a just and fair request from Turkey. The attack took pace in international waters and there should be accountability in international law.
"Israel must end the siege of Gaza. It is not a problem between Israel and Turkey but between Israel and the international community."
Davutoglu said Israel's own internal investigation was not enough since "the accused cannot be judge and prosecutor at the same time".
Israel has said it will not apologise for "defending its citizens". Turkey withdrew its ambassador from Tel Aviv in protest and is barring Israeli military planes from using its airspace. Turkish officials have said the envoy will not return until Israel meets Turkey's demands.
Davutoglu said Turkey wanted to play a constructive role as a Middle East mediator, as it has done in negotiations between Israel and Syria. "No one should tell us we are losing our mediating role because of our stand on Israel's policy on Gaza."
Hague warned: "Time is running out for a two-state solution. It is in Israel's interest to make sure that it is still possible." The foreign secretary described the blockade of Gaza as "unacceptable and unsustainable" but praised Tony Blair, as Middle East envoy, for helping to persuade Israel to ease restrictions on the goods it permits to enter the Palestinan territory.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/08/turkey-israel-gaza-flotilla
9 juli 2010
High stakes for Turkey and Israel in Gaza flotilla row
Protesters wave Palestinian and Turkish flags in a demonstration in Ankara last month against Israel's raid on the Gaza flotilla.
They may still bristle over the attack on the Mavi Marmara but both sides have enough to lose to warrant resolving the impasse
Turkey is finding it hard to make up its mind about how to deal with Israel. A blunt threat this week to sever diplomatic relations in the wake of the Gaza "freedom flotilla" affair apparently caused internal disagreements and has not been repeated. Respected critics warn of an over-reaction by the government. And Israel points to areas where, despite official anger in Ankara, military co-operation between the two countries is quietly continuing.
Yet the episode is far from over, because while Israel is conducting an internal investigation into its attack on the Mavi Marmara on 31 May, it is resisting calls for an international inquiry and insists it will not apologise for killing nine Turks. Further aid ships from Lebanon and Libya are likely to test the maritime blockade again, though the easing of import restrictions on goods entering Gaza has relieved the immediate international pressure on Israel.
Turkish domestic politics are, of course, part of this story, as is the country's orientation towards Iran, Syria and eastwards as its hopes for EU membership dim. But it is also about a changing regional environment in which Israel has never looked so isolated.
Hostility between Ankara and Jerusalem echoes, albeit in a minor key, the seismic change that took place in 1979 when the Islamic revolution ended Israel's relationship with Iran and its embassy in Tehran was taken over symbolically by Yasser Arafat's PLO. For 30 years Iran and Turkey were the mainstays of Israel's "periphery" strategy. Both had poor relations with their Arab or Muslim neighbours and valued Israel's clout with the US. On the principle that its enemies' enemies were its friends, Israel used its Mossad secret service to gave clandestine assistance to Iraqi Kurds, Lebanese Maronites and Christian rebels in Sudan at a time when peace with Arab states seemed impossible. Even when peace treaties were signed, with Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, they were not followed by wider acceptance of Israel in the region because they did not reach the Palestinian core of the conflict.
The erosion of Israel's relationship with Turkey is fundamentally a function of the failure to achieve a settlement with the Palestinians. It has accelerated in recent years because of the wars against Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Gaza, which triggered the extraordinary incident when the Turkish prime minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, became an Arab hero by storming off the Davos platform he was sharing with the Israeli president, Shimon Peres.
Israel has a lot to lose if the relationship does break down. Turkey is the only Muslim country with which Israel has had a strategic military relationship %u2013 including overflights and joint exercises. But Turkey, which prizes its membership of Nato, knows that a breach with Israel could cost it dear in the US: thus the intensive efforts being made by the Obama administration to end the standoff.
Turks are not alone in disagreeing about foreign policy. Abdullah Gul, the president, complained this week that Israelis were also divided, referring to the position of the hardline foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, who objected to, and is presumed to have leaked details of, a supposedly secret meeting in Brussels where prospects for a rapprochement were being quietly explored. Ahmet Davutoglu, Lieberman's counterpart, revealed that he felt this was an act of deliberate sabotage.
It is hard to argue with Gul's statement that Israel is behaving irrationally by apparently being prepared to ditch its relations with its only Muslim ally. But this episiode again underlines the highly corrosive effect of failing to advance towards an agreement with the Palestinians.
Support for mending fences came from another perhaps unlikely source Syria's president Bashar al-Assad, who warned that a permanent rupture with Israel would make it harder for Turkey to resume its role as broker in future Middle East peace talks. If Washington and Damascus agree, then Ankara and Jerusalem may eventually manage to patch things up.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/09/turkey-israel-gaza-flotilla-row
11 juli 2010
PGPO Will Study Sea Law For Legal Implication On Israel Boarding Mavi Marmara
KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 (Bernama) -- The Perdana Global Peace Organisation (PGPO) will study the law of the sea to find the legal implication on Israel's action to board the lead ship of the humanitarian aid flotilla, Mavi Marmara.
PGPO chairman Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad said once they knew the legal implication, the organisation would take action on Israel.
"What Israel has done is actually piracy and now Israel is detaining the ship...that is wrong. Once we know the legal implication, what are the provisions of the law of the sea, then we can take some action," he told reporters after the closing of the international conference, "Breaking the Siege: In the Spirit of Rachel Corrie and Mavi Marmara" by Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin, here, Sunday.
Dr Mahathir who is also former prime minister, said if the action could not be taken against Israel, "at least Malaysia can show to the world that Israel is a state that does not follow any international law".
He said PGPO would continue to try break the siege from the sea and would also continue to go to Gaza through Rafah to give humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.
"The blockade by sea is still on, but we will continue to bring in aid by land and sea. We are going to watch whether the declaration by Egypt that they would be opening Rafah for people to bring in aid to Gaza will be honoured," he said.
On May 31, the Israeli military boarded Mavi Marmara, the lead ship of the humanitarian aid flotilla bound for Gaza and killed nine activists and injured about a dozen more.
Twelve Malaysians were among more than 550 others on board the Mavi Marmara and six other Malaysians on MV Rachel Corrie, a cargo ship which was seized by the Israeli military while it was in international waters headed for Gaza in June.
PGPO funded two passenger ships and the MV Rachel Corrie.
Asked what the younger generation could learn from Israel's aggression towards Palestine, Dr Mahathir said they must be exposed and learn that there were people who were suffering much more than those who claimed they were suffering.
"They think they are not getting enough of this and that, but there are people out there who are actually starving to death, people who are being killed, attacked and deprived of food," he said.
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsindex.php?id=512713
Malaysia Will Request UN General Assembly To Seek ICJ Opinion On Freedom Flotilla Attack
KUALA LUMPUR, July 11 (Bernama) -- Malaysia would request the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to seek an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) concerning Israel's attack on the Freedom Flotilla, said Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.
"Malaysia will also demand Israel to immediately lift the blockade on Gaza, consistent with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1860," he said when closing the international conference, "Breaking The Siege: In the Spirit of Rachel Corrie and Mavi Marmara", at the Putra World Trade Centre, here, Sunday.
He said these were among the proposals Malaysia would make for adoption through the Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly.
He said Malaysia would strongly urge UN members to reconvene the 10th Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly to deliberate on the issue, if the calls by the international community for the UN Security Council to initiate an impartial and transparent investigation conforming to international standards on the Israeli attack on the innocent civilians remained unheeded.
Muhyiddin said Malaysia was also in the process of consulting other members of the UN, especially members of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) to support Malaysia's initiative to call for the Emergency Special Session of the UN General Assembly.
"Our main concern is, should the inhumane blockade on Gaza since June 2007 is not fully lifted, there will be the real danger of a humanitarian crisis of an alarming proportion developing and putting at risk thousands of human lives in Gaza," he said.
Muhyiddin said the Muslim ummah (community) must strengthen its unwavering solidarity with the Palestinians and act together to end the atrocities in Palestine.
"It is the religious duty of all Muslims to reject all forms of oppression and injustice meted out on mankind. What is more, the victims of these oppression and injustices are fellow Muslims.
"It is narrated in a 'hadith' that a Muslim who keeps mum and does nothing to fight against injustices committed before his own eyes is very weak in his faith," he said.
Muhyiddin said the flame of hope for a free Gaza and free Palestine must not fade away, or else, the Palestinians and their plight would once again be forgotten.
http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsgeneral.php?id=512702 31 may 2011, 10:06 , Respect -
Maria 12 juli 2010
Israeli Military Finds Flotilla Killings Justified
TEL AVIV — An Israeli military investigation into its naval takeover of a Gaza-bound flotilla six weeks ago found that it was plagued by errors of planning, intelligence and coordination but that the killings of nine Turks on board were justified, according to an official summary of the findings released Monday.
Giora Eiland, a retired major general who led the probe, presented his classified findings to the military chief of staff; they were not released to the public. But a statement said that the investigators faulted the military for not knowing who was on board one of the ships. A senior officer involved in the report said that at least 65 Turkish Islamic militants armed with metal sticks and knives were on the flotilla’s main ship, and had vowed to fight any effort by the Israeli Navy to board.
The scuffles that ensued led to Israeli commandos shooting the nine Turks, including one with dual Turkish-American citizenship.
“The team concluded that not all possible intelligence gathering methods were fully implemented and that the coordination between Navy Intelligence and the Israel Defense Intelligence was insufficient,” the report’s official summary said. “The team also pointed out that the anticipated level of violence used against the forces was underestimated.”
The investigators praised the commandos who rappelled onto the main ship from helicopters, saying that they “operated properly, with professionalism, bravery and resourcefulness.” They called the use of live fire justified. No dismissals were publicly recommended, but officers said some demotions or dismissals might occur.
The military’s investigation, carried out by eight officers, did not deal with larger policy issues like the legality or appropriateness of Israel’s blockade against Gaza or its takeover of the six-boat flotilla in international waters on May 31. A second investigation, led by a retired Supreme Court justice and including two foreign observers, has just begun its work. Neither, however, seems likely to satisfy demands for a full international investigation by the Turkish government. Turkey has withdrawn its ambassador from Tel Aviv and threatened further steps unless Israel issues an apology and sets up an international inquiry.
Everything that happened on board the Turkish flotilla six weeks ago remains a matter of controversy — who shot first, how aggressive the passengers were, how violent the commandos became, whether the action was justified in international waters. The cargo proved unquestionably humanitarian in nature — hospital beds, medicines, clothing — but the goal of the flotilla was to challenge Israel’s authority over what goes in and out of Gaza.
General Eiland, a former national security adviser, said in his briefing that more ships may try to breach Israel’s Gaza blockade and so lessons from what happened on the Turkish flotilla were important.
In fact, a Libyan vessel arrived in the area of Crete on Monday, with its crew saying it was scheduled to reach Gaza on Wednesday. Israeli officials have vowed to prevent it from getting through.
Israel created a blockade against Gaza, both by land and sea, three years ago, after Hamas, which had won elections the previous year, took full control of the Palestinian coastal strip. The goal of the blockade was to pressure Hamas, which rejects Israel’s existence and was firing crude rockets at its southern communities. Hamas has held an Israeli soldier captive in Gaza for four years. Israel has thousands of Palestinian prisoners in its jails and also set Hamas leaders and militants as targets.
The blockade, joined by Egypt, has suffocated the Gazan economy and barred people from coming and going except in medical emergencies, although food has always been let in. Following the takeover of the flotilla and the deaths on board, international pressure forced Israel to ease the land blockade.
Now the blockade is largely limited to the sea and to materials, like steel, that Israel fears could be turned into weapons by Hamas. There remains, however, intense international opprobrium because of the suffering of ordinary Palestinians in Gaza and the sense that the policy has done little to weaken Hamas.
General Eiland’s report finds that there was at least one gun on board because an Israeli soldier took a bullet in the knee that was not from an Israeli weapon. It also contends that Israeli soldiers most likely fired only after having been fired upon first.
“All the shooting was either when the soldiers were in immediate danger of their lives or when they had to rescue fellow soldiers,” a senior official involved in the investigation said, speaking under military rules of anonymity. He added that there were between four and six events in which Israeli soldiers were fired upon with live fire by those on board.
Passengers aboard the flotilla have mostly told a very different story, with some witnesses accusing the commandos of shooting randomly as they came aboard.
http://fwd4.me/06GK
IDF to blame navy in scathing report on Gaza flotilla raid
IDF chief Gabi Ashkenazi and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Military probe to accuse navy of failing to prepare for violent resistance when boarding Gaza-bound aid ships.
An Israeli military report to be released Monday on the Israel Navy's deadly May raid on a Gaza-bound flotilla is expected to accuse the navy of failing to sufficiently consider the possibility that the commandos would encounter violent resistance when attempting to keep the ships out of Gaza.
The report is also expected to criticize the navy for not cooperating sufficiently with the Mossad in gathering information ahead of the flotilla's arrival and to discuss the process by which the raid was approved. It is not, however, expected to call for disciplinary action against particular officers.
Nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists were killed in the May 31 raid after they used clubs and knives to attack Israel Navy commandos boarding the Turkish-flagged Mavi Marmara. Israel had previously warned that it would take over the ships to enforce its blockade of the Gaza Strip.
The Israel Defense Forces committee investigating the raid, headed by Maj. Gen. (res. ) Giora Eiland, is the first to complete its investigation. The Turkel Committee, appointed by the government to examine whether the raid adhered to international law, has just begun its investigation. A team from the State Comptroller's Office will be beginning its own probe of the flotilla raid shortly.
Meanwhile, the Israel Navy is preparing to block a Libyan ship carrying humanitarian aid to the region, although sources in the IDF say chances are good that the ship will sail to the Egyptian port of El-Arish. But Yousef Sawani, who heads the Gaddafi International Charity and Development Foundation, the group that chartered the ship, said the passengers do want to reach Gaza and that reports that they are going to dock in El-Arish are intended to harm morale. He said the group was a global institution, not a Libyan one.
Witnesses and various other people who have spoken to Eiland say that his report will be very critical of the army's conduct in the affair. Eiland is also reportedly critical of the government's conduct, but the report will not cover politicians.
Eilan may, however, mention the government's conduct in the press conference he has called for today. The briefing may also be the place to mention the actions of specific people with regard to the affair, if he does not mention them in his report.
It is believed that Eiland is not likely to call for action against individuals involved in the affair because of his record on such things in the past, particularly his report on the abduction of soldier Gilad Shalit four years ago.
Eiland is expected to focus his attention on specific institutions - the navy and its intelligence branch, Military Intelligence, without specifically recommending action against the officers who head these bodies.
The navy is to be the main target of Eiland's critique of the operation, although his assessment will apparently be tempered by consideration for the navy's success in several operations in recent years under Maj. Gen. Eliezer Marom.
The Turkel Committee is expected to make use of Eiland's conclusions as a jumping-off point for its investigation of the government's conduct during the affair.
If the findings of Eiland's committee and other evidence indicate that soldiers may have committed criminal offenses or war crimes, the military advocate general will be informed, and will then decide whether to open a criminal investigation, the State Prosecutor's Office informed the High Court of Justice yesterday.
The prosecution issued the statement ahead of this morning's High Court hearing of a petition by the Israeli peace group Gush Shalom, which is protesting the government's decision to appoint the Turkel Committee to investigate the flotilla raid. The petitioners want a state commission of inquiry to be established that would probe all aspects of the IDF's action with regard to the Gaza flotilla, including the decision making that preceded the raid. They also want the committee to have the authority to question soldiers involved in the incident.
"A situation in which after every operation soldiers have to testify before a civilian committee, and when the feeling created is that the soldiers should hire lawyers when they embark on an operation, harms the soldiers' ability to function and the ability of the army to fulfill its duty," the prosecution said in a statement. "In extraordinary cases, in which there is no choice, it is done. But as a rule, this is to be avoided so as not to impair the army's ability to carry out its duty."
The prosecution said it is up to the government to decide on the way the raid should be investigated. It said the Turkel Committee will have the authority to question soldiers and other members of the security forces regarding their responsibilities, but not to ask them about primarily military issues. The committee will also be able to ask Defense Minister Ehud Barak and IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi about international law as it applies to the raid.
http://fwd4.me/06GJ
Flotilla report expected to be critical of IDF preparation
Analysis: Eiland Commission probe findings to be released; sources say personal recommendations against specific senior officers will not be given for handling of naval raid.
Four years ago, almost to the day, Maj.-Gen. (res.) Giora Eiland presented the findings of the last internal IDF probe he conducted.
The date was July 10, 2006 just two days before war broke out with Hizbullah in the North when Eiland, a former head of the IDF's Strategic Planning Directorate and the Israeli National Security Council, submitted the findings from his probe into the kidnapping of Cpl. Gilad Schalit by Hamas.
Eiland was extremely careful in the wording of his conclusions. While there were various operational mishaps leading up to the kidnapping, Eiland refrained from recommending sanctions against officers in the Gaza Division.
The only penalty was the recording of the incident in the personal files of several senior officers from the Southern Command, including Col. Avi Peled, commander of the Southern Gaza Brigade.
A year later though, Peled was appointed commander of the Golani Brigade, a clear indication that Schalit's kidnapping was not held against him. The commander of the Gaza Division at the time, Brig.-Gen. Aviv Kochavi, also emerged unscathed from the probe. He is currently awaiting a promotion in rank and an appointment within the General Staff. In the meantime he has served as a member of Eiland's investigative team.
In contrast to Eiland's report, the conclusions drawn by the team that investigated the kidnapping on July 12, 2006, of reservists Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser were harsher.
Although that team's report did not issue personal recommendations against him, Brig.-Gen. Gal Hirsch the equivalent of Kochavi in the North retired from active duty following the report's publication.
A number of senior officers in the IDF referred to Eiland's last probe over the past few days as a possible indication of what can be expected in the 150-page report he is scheduled to submit to Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi on Sunday night on the IDF's Operation Sea Breeze 7 to stop the Gaza-bound flotilla from Turkey in late May, which ended with nine dead Turkish nationals and unprecedented criticism of Israel.
Leaks from within the IDF indicate that, again this time, Eiland will refrain from issuing personal recommendations against senior officers. He will, however, criticize the IDF, which he reportedly has concluded did not properly prepare for the flotilla and the possible repercussions.
That is likely why Ashkenazi chose Eiland because he is a safe choice when it comes to officers careers.
Eiland's probe though touches on a larger issue within current military culture regarding the readiness of IDF officers to take responsibility for their actions. The norm, for better or for worse, within the IDF in recent years has been to avoid responsibility, to issue general findings in military probes and thereby let officers who should be held responsible off the hook.
Opinions within the IDF are split into two schools of thought. One school holds that Eiland's probe is on the operational level and needs to issue recommendations on a tactical level how to carry out a similar operation in the future.
The other school of thought is that Eiland needs to single out specific officers. One officer could be the commander of the Navy, V.-Adm. Eliezer Marom.
This school of thought holds that, following such a tactical mishap which led to extraordinary diplomatic damage, someone needs to pay the price. Only thus will the defense establishment learn from its mistakes.
http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=181144
Israeli navy braced for criticism
An Israeli military report into the deadly raid on a flotilla of aid ships heading for the Gaza Strip is expected to heavily criticise the Israeli navy, but will not call for disciplinary actions against any officers, according to Israeli media.
An investigation by an army committee, to be made public on Monday, will reportedly accuse navy officers of failing to sufficiently consider the possibility that they would face resistance when they boarded the Turkish-flagged Mavi Marmara on May 31.
Eight Turkish citizens and a joint US-Turkish national were killed after Israeli commandos dropped onto the vessel as it tried to enforce its naval blockade of the Palestinian territory.
Israel has previously claimed that the pro-Palestinian activists were shot dead after they attacked the troops with makeshift weapons, but those on board have said that the commandos attacked first.
The army investigation, led by Major-General Giora Eiland, is separate form the public inquiry being carried out by the government-appointed Tirkel Committee, which will decide whether the raid complied with international law.
Another by the state comptroller's office is also expected to begin shortly.
'Very critical'
Israel's Haaretz newspaper reportedon Monday that "witnesses and various other people who have spoken to Eiland say that his report will be very critical of the army's conduct in the affair".
The daily said the navy is to be "the main target of Eiland's critique of the operation, although his assessment will apparently be tempered by consideration for the navy's success in several operations in recent years under Major-General Eliezer Marom".
The Israeli media reports said that the military commission's report pointed to "flaws" in the preparations for the raid.
The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper said that their were problems with the "battle guidelines" issued to commandoes and the intelligence gathered prior to the military boarding the Mavi Marmara.
The Jerusalem Post said that the reportfocused "on the relationship between the military and political echelons as well as the apparent intelligence failure, under which the navy commandos boarded the ship without knowing that a group of passengers, apparently mercenaries, had laid an ambush".
Widespread criticism
Eiland was expected to present the findings to the members of the General Staff, including Marom, Major-General Tal Russo, the head of Israeli military operations, and Major-General Amos Yadlin, a military intelligence official, before making the report public.
Israel has faced widespread international criticism over the deaths of the activists.
Turkey withdrew its envoy to Israel, later saying that the incident would leave an "irreparable and deep scar".
Amid an international outcry over the raid, Israel rejected a proposal by Ban Ki-moon, the UN chief, for an international inquiry, but appointed two foreign observers - David Trimble, a Northern Ireland politician and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, and Canadian jurist Ken Watkin - to the Tirkel Committee.
Israel has said its commandos were enforcing a blockade necessary to prevent weapons from reaching Hamas fighters in the Gaza Strip, but has since eased its land border restrictions with the territory to allow through more civilian goods.
http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2010/07/201071255657605124.html
Israel Report Cites Flawed Planning for Flotilla Raid
TEL AVIV An Israeli military report blames faulty intelligence and poor planning for the botched raid of a Gaza-bound aid ship, but praises the "heroic" commandos who carried out the raid and concludes that the ship's Turkish passengers likely fired first.
This is the first internal Israeli report into the incident, which left eight Turks and one Turkish-American dead and triggered an international uproar. A separate government-appointed commission investigating the incident has a broader mandate to investigate and is expected to announce its findings within weeks.
The degree to which the international community, including Washington, perceive the Israeli investigations as independent and credible could help determine whether the United Nations pushes ahead with an investigation of its own into the incident and how much support it receives from member nations if it does.
After the raid, Washington demanded that Israel ease the blockade of Gaza, which Israel has taken some steps to comply with, while Turkey withdrew its ambassador from Tel Aviv and canceled three joint military exercises.
A spokesman for the Turkish Foreign Ministry said his government had not yet formulated its response to the results announced by the Israeli military investigation. A senior U.S. official said Washington would wait to pass judgment after the independent government commission completes its investigation.
Huseyin Oruc, an executive board member of the Humanitian Relief Foundation, or IHH, the Turkish aid organization that sponsored the aid flotilla and whose members attacked the Israeli soldiers as they boarded the ship, dismissed Israeli charges that passengers had firearms and fired the first shot.
"Why did they wait 42 days to say this? If there was a single gun on the ship, why didn't they tell it to the world from the first minute?" he said.
The investigation, headed by retired Israeli Maj. Gen. Giora Eiland faulted "underestimation of the resistance on the ship" because of flawed intelligence and poor cooperation between the navy and Israel's intelligence services, a senior Israeli military official involved in the investigation told reporters in a briefing at Israel's sprawling military headquarters complex in downtown Tel Aviv.
It also faulted a "lack of understanding of the means that would be more effective" to deal with the ship and its passengers, the official said.
The commission found mistakes were made at a senior level, but avoided pinning blame on individual officers, at least according to those conclusions which were shared publicly. The majority of the investigation's findings are classified.
The official commended the commandoes who carried out the May 31 raid, calling their conduct "professional and courageous."
"In all events where Israeli soldiers decided to shoot, it was because they were facing immediate danger to their lives or had decided they had to rescue soldiers who had been captured," he said. "There is a good chance that the fist shot was not by an Israeli soldier."
He said that passengers on board the ship fired between four and six shots at Israeli soldiers, using guns that were taken off of Israeli soldiers and at least one firearm that was already on board the ship. A bullet removed from the knee of an Israeli commando wounded during the raid was from a gun that wasn't issued by the Israeli military, he said.
Israel found a stockpile of light weapons on the ship, including knives, steel pipes and slingshots, but found no firearms.
Since the May 31 incident, one additional aid ship has tried to run the blockade but was stopped peacefully. Pro-Palestinian activists say they are planning to send additional aid ships, including one that has already set sail from Libya and could arrive to Gaza as soon as Wednesday.
"If tomorrow we face a similar ship, we'll be able to stop it," the official said. "If there are dozens of people on board with cold weapons and they are committed to kill soldiers and committed to be killed, we can't guarantee they won't be killed."
http://fwd4.me/06GH
Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eiland Submits Conclusions of Military Examination Team Regarding Mavi Marmara,
Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eiland Presents the Chief of the General Staff with the Conclusions of his Examination Team
The IDF Chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi, received the conclusions reached by a team of experts, headed by Maj. Gen. (Res.) Giora Eiland, tasked with examining the incidents that took place at sea on May 31st 2010.
Maj. Gen. Eiland presented the team%u2019s findings and conclusions to the Chief of the General Staff as well as to officers from the General Staff and from other IDF branches and directorates who were involved in the preparations and in the actual boarding of the flotilla. The core of the report was presented the Minister of Defense of Israel as well.
The team was appointed by the Chief of the General Staff to examine the deployment towards the flotilla, the chosen course of action and other possible alternatives, advance preparations, and the operation's implementation.
The team included eight officers and their examination focused on intelligence, Naval command, the naval commando unit responsible for carrying out the operation, the Israel Air Force, media relations, technological alternatives, medical aspects and legal counsel and international law.
The examination presented various lessons on a broad, systemic level, not only as regards this specific operation (stopping the flotilla).
In terms of the intelligence effort, the team concluded that not all possible intelligence gathering methods were fully implemented and that the coordination between Navy Intelligence and the Israel Defense Intelligence was insufficient. At the same time, the team emphasized that it is not certain that an optimal intelligence effort would create a complete intelligence picture. The team also pointed out that the anticipated level of violence used against the forces was underestimated.
In terms of situation assessments towards the flotilla, the team clarified that the operation relied excessively on a single course of action, albeit a probable one, while no alternative courses of action were prepared for the event of more dangerous scenarios.
Regarding technological alternatives, the team determined that on the day of the incident, decision makers were not presented with alternative operational courses of action other than a full boarding of the flotilla. The team emphasized the fact that as far as is currently known, no country in the world holds the ability to stop a vessel at sea in a non hostile manner. Therefore statements made on this matter following the incident are unfounded and irresponsible. At the same time, the team determined that alternative courses of action could have existed had the process of preparation begun enough time in advance, and recommended to accelerate the process of examining alternative methods.
The expert team determined that regarding media relations, the preparations made in advance were good. However, the release of press statements and visual materials was delayed due to the need to maintain reliability, the obligation to notify the families of the critically injured soldiers and the long authorization process at the levels above the IDF Spokesperson Unit. The team noted with favor the work of the IDF spokesperson following the incident and emphasized the need for better coordination between the IDF, the foreign ministry and other foreign affairs institutions.
In terms of operation command, the team determined that the location of the commanders during the incident and the presence of the Commander of the Israel Navy at sea during the operation, was proper and fit with the Chief of the General Staff's view regarding the role of commanders at the front lines of IDF activity. His presence proved effective in terms of the decision making process, saving lives and more. The team praised the Israel Navy combat protocols, the preparations of the Naval Commando Unit, the Navy Command, the Electronic Warfare Formation and the medical evacuation.
The team determined that the Navy Commando soldiers operated properly, with professionalism, bravery and resourcefulness and that the commanders exhibited correct decision making. The report further determines that the use of live fire was justified and that the entire operation is estimable.
The team noted with favor the various stages of medical evacuation of the injured by air and by sea, including the injured passengers of the Mavi Marmara. In addition the team pointed out the serious attitude with which the General Staff and the Israel Navy approached the matter, as expressed in the preparations.
Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eiland noted with favor the degree of cooperation and transparency exhibited by those involved in the examination at all levels. In the summary of the examination Maj. Gen. Eiland determined that the issue should be viewed with perspective, being that the damage caused to Israel is not as severe as it seemed following the incident. In addition, he said that a there%u2019s a tendency to draw general conclusions based on a single incident and that the fact that the IDF examines itself and others do not, results in that only the errors of the IDF are publicized,%u201D according to Maj. Gen. (Res.) Eiland.
http://idfspokesperson.com/2010/07/12/maj-gen-res-eiland-submits-conclusions-of-military-examination-team-regarding-mavi-marmara-12-july-2010/
No Wrongdoing In Israeli Raid on Gaza Ship: Report
TEL AVIV (Reuters) - An Israeli military inquiry found no wrongdoing or negligence in the navy's raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, but said intelligence and operational mistakes led to the deaths of nine Turkish activists.
A civilian panel is conducting a separate inquiry into the May 31 raid that triggered an international outcry, strained Israel's relations with its once-close Muslim ally Turkey and forced the Jewish state to ease its land blockade on Gaza.
"The inquiry found that on the one hand there were no wrongdoings and no negligences in any fundamental areas during a complicated and complex operation," Giora Eiland, a retired Israeli general who headed the military inquiry said on Monday.
"But on the other hand there were mistakes that were made in decisions, including some taken at relatively high levels, which meant that the result was not as had been initially anticipated," Eiland told reporters at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv, where he released his report into the incident.
Israel says its troops acted in self-defense in opening fire on passengers who attacked them with metal rods and knives.
It also says the interception was necessary to enforce a naval blockade designed to prevent arms shipments from reaching Hamas, the Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip.
EVIDENCE ACTIVISTS OPENED FIRE
Eiland said his inquiry found evidence that activists on the Turkish-flagged Mavi Marmara opened fire on Israeli commandos.
"We found that there are at least four incidents in which the people who were on the ship shot at our soldiers, either by using the weapons that were stolen from the soldiers or a weapon that they had," he said.
"We do have evidence that there was at least one weapon on this ship before we arrived and there is good reason to believe that the first shooting that occurred was when our soldier, the second soldier that arrived on the deck from the very first helicopter was shot by somebody," he added.
Turkish organizers of the flotilla reject Israeli claims that activists opened fire first, with guns seized from Israeli commandos. They say activists seized guns but threw them overboard.
Some of the commandos, the Israeli military said at the time, were armed with paintball guns -- but also carried pistols -- in anticipation of only light resistance.
Eiland said better intelligence on the activists' plan to attack Israeli commandos could have prevented the bloodshed.
The separate civilian panel is led by a former Israeli Supreme Court Justice Jacob Turkel and includes two international observers.
Its narrow mandate does not include an examination of the political decision-making process behind the launching of the raid, although Turkel said it would call for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to testify.
Instead, it focuses on whether the naval blockade and the flotilla's interception conformed with international law. The panel will also investigate the actions taken by the convoy's organizers and participants.
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2010/07/12/news/news-us-palestinians-israel-flotilla.html?_r=1&hp