Israel, Turkey lock horns over flotilla

Sat Jul 9, 2011

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has once again rejected Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's conditions for the normalization of diplomatic relations.

"Israel did not commit any crime,” he said in an interview with Israel's Channel 1 television on Friday night, the Israeli daily Haaretz reported.

He made the remarks after Erdogan said earlier on Friday that Israel must apologize for the killing of nine Turkish pro-Palestinian activists last year.

On May 31, 2010, Israeli commandos attacked the first Freedom Flotilla in international waters in the Mediterranean Sea, killing nine Turkish citizens on board the Turkish-flagged M.V. Mavi Marmara and injuring about 50 other people who were part of the team on the six-ship convoy.

Israeli troops also forced the ships to dock at an Israeli port and detained all those on board.

During a speech to the Turkish parliament, Erdogan also said Tel Aviv should lift its four-year blockade of Gaza and pay compensation to the victims of the flotilla attack.

However, the Israeli defense minister said he expected the UN inquiry to vindicate Israel's actions.

"The Palmer commission will say that Israel acted according to international law. The blockade is legal, stopping the ships is legal, the use of force in these circumstances is justified," Barak said.

On Thursday, an Israeli official said that a UN report on Israel's flotilla attack would be published on July 27.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail/188219.html.