24.01.11 – 11:36 Tel Aviv – PNN – The Israeli human rights group Gisha Legal Center for Freedom of Movement published a press release on Sunday disputing the interim conclusions of the Turkel Commission, the Israeli legal body assigned the task of investigating the May 31 Gaza flotilla attack.
After the commission, chaired by retired judge Jacob Turkel, concluded that both the blockade and the raid—which killed nine Turkish aid activists—were legal under international law, Gisha released a statement to the press concluding the opposite:
“No commission of inquiry can authorize the collective punishment of a civilian population by restricting its movement and access, as Israel did in its closure of Gaza, of which the maritime closure was an integral part.”
Gisha cites a list of international law violations committed by Israel in connection to the Gaza blockade, including the prevention of passage of “civilian goods such as spices, raw materials and consumer items,” even limiting the food purchasing power of each Gaza resident.
“So long as Israel controls central elements of life in Gaza,” concluded the Gisha report, “including movement via the crossings, it must take responsibility for the effects of its control on the 1.5 million human beings living in the Gaza Strip.”
The Turkel Commission found that in 133 cases of force used against passengers on the Mavi Marmara ship, on which nine were killed including one American dual citizen, 127 were justified. The other six “lacked sufficient data.” The use of naval commandoes, according to the Commission, was legal as a means of enforcing the blockade.
Turkish authorities slammed the Turkel findings, saying they were “appalled and dismayed” about the findings, which they claimed had “no value or credibility.” Israeli Arab MK Hanan Zoabi, who joined the flotilla, said the findings “cannot erase Israel’s reputation as a country that repeatedly breaks international law.”
PNN – Palestine News Network – Israel Human Rights Group Disputes Turkel Commission Findings.

January 25, 2011 
































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