Israel faces global backlash
Reageer (0)By Tobias Buck in Jerusalem and Daniel Dombey in,Washington
1-6-2010
Israel faced furious international condemnation yesterday after naval commandos attacked a convoy of ships carrying aid to the Gaza Strip, killing at least nine pro-Palestinian activists and wounding many more.
Three of the boats were flying the Turkish flag and several of the passengers killed are believed to have been Turkish citizens. Turkey's government recalled its ambassador from Israel and gave warning that relations between the two countries had suffered irreparable damage.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's prime minister, accused Israel of "inhuman state terror" and last night Ankara was leading a push at the United Nations for an international inquiry.
The Israeli forces attacked the flotilla of six vessels from helicopters and warships just before dawn, in international waters between Cyprus and the Gaza coast. Israeli officials said the troops opened fire only after coming under attack by activists, who charged them with knives and sticks, and allegedly fired live rounds.
Footage released by the Israeli authorities showed soldiers leaving a helicopter and abseiling on to a ship, only to be set upon by activists and beaten to the deck.
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's prime minister, said the soldiers "had to defend themselves and defend their lives or else they would have been killed". Seven of the Israelis were wounded.
However, the organisers of the convoy accused the commandos of firing "directly into the crowd of civilians asleep".
The incident put an end to the most ambitious attempt yet to break Israel's blockade of Gaza, which is ruled by Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group.
But analysts warned that the assault by the naval Shayetet 13 commando unit was likely to carry a significant political price. Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, said he was "shocked" by the killings, stressing that the boats had been in international waters.
The UN Security Council was in emergency session last night seeking to agree a formal statement. Turkey said such a declaration should not just back an inquiry but also demand an Israeli apology and the release of the ships. Although such a move would fall short of a Security Council resolution, any UN backing for an international investigation would be deeply unwelcome to Israel.
While France called for an investigation that met international standards, the US, Israel's closest ally, did not endorse an international inquiry. US diplomats said they wanted to avoid any action that could jepoardise Middle East peace talks.
Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey's foreign minister, told the Security Council that Israel had "lost its legitimacy as a respectful [sic] member of the international community" and called for the country to "be held accountable for its crimes". In its testimony to the council, Israel said the flotilla's organisers were connected to terrorists.
Mr Netanyahu cut short an official visit to Canada and the US to return to Israel to deal with the crisis, postponing a planned meeting today with Barack Obama, the US president, in Washington. Mr Obama spoke to the Israeli leader on the telephone, saying that he "understood" Mr Netanyahu's decision to return home and deeply regretted the loss of life.
William Hague, Britain's foreign secretary, called for an "impartial investigation" into the incident and said one British citizen had been wounded.
Israeli leaders defended the assault and blamed the casualties on the activists. Danny Ayalon, Israel's deputy foreign minister, described the flotilla as "an armada of hate and violence" and accused its organisers of a "premeditated and outrageous provocation". He said Israel had offered to allow aid into Gaza through the usual channels, but the convoy had been seeking a new route for weapons shipments to militants.
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